Payments

U.S. consumers have been more punctual than ever before in paying back debts as the economy rebounds from the pandemic. 

The $317 million deal will provide the London company with a large base of American clients and help it compete with technology firms like Square, PayPal and Stripe.

Chase Payment Solutions combines Chase Merchant Services with WePay, a fintech the bank bought in 2017, to provide more tailored offerings — such as card acceptance without a merchant account — to entrepreneurs.

The lender is building on a 20-year-old partnership with Fiserv to provide options such as revolving credit, with plans to add buy now/pay later.

Spending on cards continued to increase during the third quarter, while loan balances rose slightly and payment rates began to return to more normal levels. A top company executive expressed confidence that loan growth will pick up but said, “It’s going to take time.”

Banks working with Swift, The Clearing House and EBA Clearing have completed a successful pilot transaction from the U.S. to Europe and are ready to bring the system to other international corridors.

The payments firm dropped support for Bitcoin payments in 2018, but company executives say the increasing popularity of digital currency makes it a good time to reenter the market.

By partnering with the London-based fintech, Andrews Federal Credit Union will enable members to send transfers to 80 countries.

The bank-supported blockchain organization plans to use the acquired assets to speed testing for digital currencies.

Nonfungible tokens, which provide proof of ownership in the digital world, are booming. Payment companies are betting they will require payment rails to fund high-value purchases and attract new customers for loyalty marketing.