Mobile payments

Most new payments and financial services innovation isn't tied to the actual payment, making hosted and cloud solutions a good fit for right sizing resources.

When Zelle launches, it will not allow users to share information about their payments with other folks in their network. That decision puts the P-to-P service on a different course than Venmo, its fast-growing rival.

For some time now, restaurant chains have been adding mobile order-ahead options, betting they’d be popular with their customers. But even they were caught off guard with just how big of a hit the technology is turning out to be.

International money transfer service TransferWise Ltd. has announced an integration with Facebook Inc.’s Messenger that will let people set up foreign exchange transactions over the chat service.

The mobile device and its embedded technology can make a strong combination to protect user ID, and comply with new European regulations for security.

More everyday products are becoming connected devices, including refrigerators, washing machines and even mirrors. As each household item evolves, companies are eager to transform them into channels for shopping.

Buying clothes can be a tedious process of waiting in lines to get into the dressing room, and then waiting in line again to make a purchase. As it turns out, eliminating the second half of this process can also reduce the first half.

Linking payments accounts to public profiles is a convenience that makes digital payments as easy as typing a tweet, but after a high-profile trolling incident involving one of President Trump's closest colleagues, it seems there are still issues to work out.

The rush to stake out central roles in the emerging Internet of Things is picking up speed, with IBM and Visa announcing a partnership for adding secure payments technology to everyday objects, including vehicles.

The attack goes after the social network customer service channels for issuers and other financial services, and is hard for consumers to spot.