PayThink

The SBA is committed to modernizing and simplifying its lending practices and, under the Obama administration, the agency has eliminated pages of regulations that were blocking the capital pipeline and hindering the growth of our economy.

While new government guidance is intended to make banks more willing to do business with legal marijuana dealers, in practice it creates a new set of headaches for bankers.

Since Google announced support for host card emulation (HCE) in Android KitKat 4.4 last year, the industry has been divided.

The Financial Stability Oversight Council plans to regulate the asset management industry by targeting activities that pose systemic risk rather than the companies themselves. Regulators should take the same approach with life insurers, according to former U.S. Sen. Dirk Kempthorne.

Financial institutions and industries targeted by Operation Choke Point should expect to see a dramatic increase in the issuance of administrative subpoenas or civil investigative demands.

It sometimes seems that two issues dominate payments: the ongoing battle over the price of payments between major retailers and issuing banks, and the organizations in developed markets that are tumbling over each over to announce their latest wallet, wearable token or smartphone app is going to revolutionise the payments world as we know it.

The invention of baby carrots transformed Americans' vegetable-eating habits. Banks need to shake up their products and services in a similarly unique way if they hope to differentiate themselves, according to Bill Early of PlumDog Financial.

Some politicians and regulators appear determined to shrink big banks. But doing so could hurt Americans who appreciate big banks' geographical reach and wide range of services, according to financial markets scholar Stephen Matteo Miller.

Evolution is occurring rapidly in mobile payments. While the innovation headlines are being made by the digital innovators and new industry entrants, banks still have a window of opportunity to take strategic advantage and preserve their traditional payments franchise.

Given Americans' heightened concerns over cybersecurity, banks should reconsider the notion of promoting card use for every transaction, according to Douglas Ceto of CetoLogic.