In an interview with American Banker following Circle's IPO debut, President Heath Tarbert discussed the stablecoin issuer's go-public timing, the importance of regulation and transparency and how the fintech sees itself working with banks.

The stablecoin issuer's initial public offering is widely seen as a bellwether for the cryptocurrency industry at large. Circle's stock traded as high as $95.98 midday Thursday, nearly triple its $31-a-share pricing.

The card network behemoths and the London-based bank are looking to expand account-to-account payments through fresh partnerships and investments. Plus: President Trump withdraws Shift4 CEO's NASA nomination, and tokenized payments gain steam in Europe in this week's global payments roundup.

The payments fintech is partnering with credit unions such as Michigan State Federal Credit Union to offer cash-back rewards on debit transactions using account-to-account payment schemes.

Using watches, wristbands and other accessories at the point of sale is set for a boom, pressuring financial institutions to develop a strategy for the banking tech.

A focus on client relationships, rather than products, and investments in AI are helping the company in an increasingly competitive market.

The card giant appointed Antony Cahill as its new regional president and CEO; Global Payments further simplifies its business; Curve adds Apple Pay rival to iOS devices; and more in this week's global payments roundup.

The stablecoin issuer has kicked off its initial public offering after reportedly delaying it due to macroeconomic uncertainty caused by Trump's tariff plans last month. It first filed its S-1 with the Securities and Exchange Commission in April.

The Spanish bank is integrating machine learning with cards, payments, financial management, savings and other products, while the American banking giant is assessing risk for business transactions. Plus: The CFPB eases a consent order on Wise.

Prepaid cards are finding new use cases in the hospitality industry, where tip disbursements have traditionally been cumbersome.

The technology company is using its marketing and commerce platform BentoBox to improve diners' experience, even as analysts question the growth of its signature Clover system amid a crowded market for point of sale services.

Engineering an orderly transition toward greater currency diversification is urgent. It would strengthen financial resilience and help sustain international economic integration.

The bank, which owns 48.5% of the Greek fintech, is battling with the company's owners over how to determine valuation, among other disputes. JPMorgan says it is reviewing aspects of the legal case but is still seeking a $1 billion claim in Greece.

New York State Gov. Kathy Hochul has codified how buy now/pay later lending will operate in the state, taking a heavier hand as the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau loosens its grip under President Trump.

Checkout-free retail, which enables transactions without a dedicated point of sale, provides a trove of data that can aid dozens of mobile banking functions, though it's not widely used due to difficult upgrades.

The fintech's CEO told analysts during Thursday's earnings call that generative AI was taking search by storm and that investors "should absolutely expect us to have an answer for that."

The payment company joins other firms that are expanding apps in Europe, where Apple has agreed to ease access to supporting technology. Plus, the U.K. plans a new crypto crackdown.

AI agents have the power to automate a number of once-manual tasks: They can conduct background research, generate content, write code and analyze data. In their latest evolution, driven by Visa, Mastercard and other fintechs, payments are now on the menu of services.

A service outage on Friday at Fiserv affected multiple banks and crippled at least 60 applications for some Fiserv customers, including Early Warning's peer-to-peer money transfer app Zelle. The issue, while resolved, reiterates the importance of bank redundancies.

Curve, a London-based fintech, has added a mobile wallet to its flagship product that lets consumers switch cards after the point of purchase.