Merchant

Under the hood of U.S. Bank's new mobile app; BofA, Wells Fargo sour on blockchain; are Fannie and Freddie too big?; and more from this week's most-read stories.

Linda McMahon is planning to step down from leading the Small Business Administration to help raise money for President Donald Trump’s re-election campaign, according to people familiar with the matter.

Mobile technology provider Mahindra Comviva developed a software integration for issuing banks and third-party digital wallet providers to add contactless payment capabilities to their mobile products in India.

In the emerging ecosystem economy, merchants will need to provide a seamless buying journey for customers. That means everything from a dynamic user interface and smart authentication to contactless payment options for faster transaction times, writes Paul Perry, a contributor for the technology company Relay.

The U.K. government is consulting with train operators on smart pay-as-you-go ticketing. The goal is to enable consumers to travel across the U.K.’s entire railway network by tapping in and out with contactless cards or smartphones instead of paper tickets.

Once Apple looked at the state of its existing ecosystem, it identified a space it could uniquely deliver on, and activated the partners needed to make it come to fruition — a perfect example of the concept of ecosystem enablement, argues Frank Kenney, director of market strategy for Cleo.

U.S. lawmakers are not enthusiastic about the cashless trend being driven by the likes of Amazon Go, sweetgreen, and numerous other merchants of all sizes.

StreetShares will add to its line of financing products with a credit card specifically for small-business owners with a military background.

As more national banks leave smaller communities and focus on large customers, fintechs are creating an "Uber effect" with an easier experience. Small businesses are increasingly looking to borrow money and fund their growth initiatives, and need a partner who can deliver, argues William Phelan, president of PayNet.

The U.K. prepaid gift card market is experiencing strong growth among consumers who buy them as gifts and for self-use, as well as among businesses that purchase them for customer loyalty programs and as employee incentives.