Merchant

The North Carolina regional closed dozens of branches and cut jobs across the company, directing a chunk of the savings to digital banking initiatives.

Calvin Broadus, better known as the rapper Snoop Dogg, will acquire shares in the Swedish-based alternative finance company Klarna from an existing investor as he becomes the face of Klarna’s new advertising campaign.

Consumers are looking to Instagram and other social networks over traditional branding, according to Acceleration Partners' Robert Glazer.

The numbers behind Fiserv's deal to acquire First Data are huge, particularly considering each company's existing tonnage still makes consolidation the best play when faced with nimble fintechs and mobile startups.

Local payment methods cater to the technology and user-experience needs of specific regions, says Steve Villegas, vice president of partner management at PPRO.

To stay ahead of the rapid development of payment applications, the Payment Card Industry Security Standards Council is making new software security standards and a validation program for vendors available later this year.

The Federal Reserve has suggested it could join the market for instant interbank payments, but private-sector entrants would be better.

Fiserv will acquire First Data in an all-stock deal with a value of about $22 billion that will combine two of the financial services industry's largest technology and processing companies.

Credit unions and smaller banks can differentiate themselves by returning to the passion for personal service that first anchored their success, and payments are central to this strategy, according to Deborah Matthews Phillips, managing director of payment strategy at Jack Henry.

Just a few years ago, tech companies imagined a world where Bluetooth beacons would push alerts to consumers' smartphones as they walked by a store or navigated its aisles. The tech isn't gone, but it's become more subtle in how it's being used.