Technology

Mastercard CEO Ajay Banga says he is certain that science, medicine and innovation will lead the world out of the coronavirus pandemic, but there is little indication of when that will happen.

Treasury secretary says big firms that took PPP loans should apologize, not just return the money; German fintech’s shares drop 26% as audit fails to rebut accounting fraud allegations.

Whether presented at the teller line or through digital channels, the best way to prevent fraud is by triangulating items in real-time against a robust fraud database. To strengthen the database, fraud data needs to be contributed in return, says Advance Fraud Solutions' Ted Kirk.

At the start of 2020, the overriding security concern when it came to payments was fraud. After all, before the days of the global coronavirus pandemic, no one had really viewed hygiene as being a particular selling point.

Barclays has experienced an incremental £264 million (about $330 million) in contactless spend in the month since it raised its per-transaction limit in response to the coronavirus pandemic, which has created an aversion to cash and contact payments.

Paytronix, whose technology enables mobile payments and ordering at restaurants, has received $10 million in funding to help support increased demand for its services through the pandemic.

Facebook’s Libra cryptocurrency has been climbing uphill from the start, losing many prominent partners along the way — though the recent addition of Checkout.com will partially make up for those setbacks.

While the entire economy will slow due to stay-in-place orders and temporary economic shutdowns, payments fintech is expected to fare much better than other investment sectors due to these trends.

Fintechs in the payments industry saw problems coming when the CARES Act’s SBA Paycheck Protection Program opened the floodgates for millions of coronavirus-stricken small businesses to apply for loans.

Lawmakers should approve a program to distribute stimulus funds using a government-sanctioned coin, which would be speedier than the current system.