Fintech

Cash is not dead, but the burdens of ensuring access threaten to break long-standing ecosystems that sustain traditional payments.

The Providence, R.I., bank recently installed a new regional head in California to oversee a commercial banking expansion into five western states. The bank says it’s trying to craft a successful growth strategy while reassuring investors it isn’t overreaching.

Following a two-year pilot, several Sri Lanka banks are rolling out co-branded credit and debit cards connecting LankaPay, the local payments network, with Japan’s JCB brand, extending the cards’ reach to any global merchant or ATM that accepts JCB.

Ripple is collaborating with financial software company Finastra, boosting both companies' reach in the cross-border transaction market.

Any entity questioning Libra runs up against the longstanding legal precedent set by private label gift and GPR, and myriad other prepaid account offerings, says payments consultant and researcher Richard Crone.

Companies like Stripe provide a needed source of capital, but should expand lending beyond their existing base, says Become's Eden Amirav.

The state's Democratic-controlled Legislature has enacted laws establishing data privacy rights, giving municipalities the ability to set up public banks, and requiring standardized disclosures on small-business loans, among other issues. Lawmakers elsewhere are taking notice.

Though synthetic identity fraud is down across the industry, there's been an uptick in such attacks targeting credit unions.

Europe's PSD2 doesn't directly impact Hong Kong, but its monetary decision makers support open banking frameworks, sparking a network of banks to support that effort through the help of HSBC and Swift.

Delinquencies on indirect auto and home equity loans are trending up, while past-due rates on credit cards are declining, according to a recent report by the American Bankers Association.