Payments

The commerce company has made major inroads into embedded finance, a strategy that could get a boost from partnering with the social media giant's new AI agent.

Exclusive Research: Banks are moving too slowly to meet demand for cheaper, faster payments

Volume on a rail for AI agents to make transactions has fallen 93% in 2026 while related startups flood the market, suggesting technology is developing faster than demand. But payment experts say there's still a very bright future for shopping and checkout via advanced forms of AI.

The South Korean automaker's credit card subsidiary completed two proof-of-concept transactions that used stablecoins to move funds between subsidiaries in the U.S. and Mexico without a bank. Next, Hyundai Motor will test if the technology can be used as the backbone of its global treasury infrastructure.

Visa and Mastercard have released products designed to manage AI agent risk, and are also working with Ant International on a shared know-your-agent protocol.

Over the last 14 years, Chime has risen from fledgling fintech to a poster child for what successful bank-fintech partnerships can look like. Now, as the neobank stands on the precipice of owning its own bank, it faces new challenges as it gears up to go toe-to-toe with some of the country's largest banks.

A high-yield savings account, incentive marketing and artificial intelligence-powered payroll are new additions to a long-standing strategy to lure clients away from fintechs and banks.

Consumers' spending and payment behaviors were "holding very firm" despite inflationary pressures, Synchrony Chief Financial Officer Brian Wenzel said at the Barclays Global Financial Services Conference.

Increased costs, a limited consumer pool and churn are pressuring the financial institutions that are competing in the luxury card market.

The digital asset and card-issuing firms are supplying the guts to enable transactions for cards and digital wallets, betting that Mastercard's ties to both firms will be attractive to banks, consumers and merchants.

North Carolina-based First Citizens BancShares completes its acquisition of 138 branches across 11 states; City National Bank appoints Chad Lloyd senior vice president and head of RBC U.S. Mortgage; London-based payments processor Checkout.com launches its U.S. subsidiary in Georgia; and more in this week's banking news roundup.

The institution tested USBDC in an international payment ahead of a wider rollout and amid its work on the cross-industry Open Standard stablecoin project.

President Donald Trump said that he supported capping what he called "out-of-control credit card swipe fees" at the Republican midterm convention in Dallas. Wednesday's comments mark the third time the president has said he supported the Credit Card Competition Act.

The payments fintech announced that it has applied for a national trust bank charter from the OCC for both bitcoin and stablecoin custody.

Owning a bank will allow Chime to build products faster, shed partner banking fees, and reduce its funding cost, while also allowing the neobank to more efficiently expand its lending business.

Tazapay's last-mile infrastructure will help Circle expand its own infrastructure and USDC distribution in the Asia-Pacific region and emerging markets, where demand for USDC-denominated transactions is growing.

Research finds consumers are using billers' websites to make payments, largely snubbing banks' sites.