New self-regulatory guidelines for credit cards and checking accounts are arriving at a time of deregulation in Washington, D.C.

Citigroup is on a quest to modernize its global payments stack and be the go-to financial institution for cross-border payments and international corporations. Debopama Sen, head of payments at Citi's Services business, spoke with American Banker about the divisions' progress since its Services Investor Day in June 2024.

The company also launched a similarly priced version for businesses as part of an overhaul marking JPMorgan's latest volley in the ultra-competitive world of premium credit cards.

American Express teased updates coming later this year to its travel-focused Platinum credit cards.

The card, powered by fintech Cardless' embedded credit card platform, provides up to 4% cash back in bitcoin, and allows customers to service their account directly in the cryptocurrency exchange's app, similar to the way Apple Card works in Apple Wallet.

Synchrony issued the Walmart credit card for nearly two decades until 2018, when it lost the partnership to Capital One Financial. The latest deal does not include the balances tied to Walmart's existing credit card program.

The Swedish buy now/pay later provider and the San Jose, California-based payments system separately launched payment cards in an effort to bring their digital finance offerings to brick-and-mortar stores and compete with established credit card issuers.

The card issuing fintech has worked for years to expand its business outside of Block. Mike Milotich, who in February became the third person to hold the fintech's top job in as many years, has been tasked to do just that.

Capital One's acquisition of Discover brings it to the top of the ranking.

Almost 15 months after its announcement, Capital One Financial Corp.'s takeover of Discover Financial Services was officially completed on Sunday, creating the largest credit-card issuer by loan volume in the US.

The card processor came up short on expected profits but hit analysts' estimates on revenue in the second quarter of its fiscal 2025. CEO Ryan McInerney said growth in payments volume, cross-border volume and processed transactions were strong even in the face of shaky economic conditions.

Super apps such as AliPay and WeChat Pay have carved out immense market share by enticing users as a one-stop shop for their payment, shopping and social needs in a model that many U.S.-based companies have tried to replicate. But what makes a super app successful, and how easy are they to launch?

The credit card issuer trimmed its outlook on revenue and average loan growth, but maintained its target for net loss rates against the backdrop of an otherwise solid quarter. The company also announced a new co-branded credit card with Crypto.com. 

Capital One outlined some of its to-do items as it integrates with Discover, which include long-haul investments in technology, global marketing and risk management.

Synchrony Financial stands to benefit from the undoing of a Biden-era cap on credit card late fees. Company executives said that Tuesday that they won't be rolling back changes they implemented to compensate for revenue the company would have lost.

Both the Federal Reserve and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency signed off on the $35 billion transaction, which has faced opposition since it was announced last February.

A federal judge in Texas found that the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau had violated the CARD Act by barring banks from charging late fees for credit cards.

In a settlement with bank trade groups that sued the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, the Trump administration has agreed to drop the credit card late fee rule with prejudice.

The Bank of Lithuania contends the U.S. fintech broke anti-money-laundering rules; while British contactless payments hit a record. That and more in the American Banker global payments roundup.

The proposed $35 billion merger between Capital One and Discover cleared a major regulatory hurdle as the Justice Department told financial regulators in a confidential memo that it didn't have sufficient evidence to block the transaction.