Payments

Payment professionals expect physical cards to stick around for the foreseeable future, even as mobile wallets gain traction.

Card networks, fintechs and Walmart have started major account-to-account payment initiatives in the past few weeks.

The credit card heavyweight said that it expects its acquisition of rival Discover will close in early 2025, pending the approval of shareholders and regulators.

With the payments industry looking for signs of consumer distress, the credit card company says spending is starting to stabilize and it's retaining customers at a strong rate.

New York Attorney General Letitia James asked a state court for permission to issue subpoenas to Capital One as part of an ongoing antitrust probe by the state,

With two excellent real-time payments rails now available in the U.S., enabling QR code transactions is essential. The financial services industry needs to come together and establish uniform standards.

The card lender took full control of Swisscard from UBS; the Financial Conduct Authority is bringing installment lending regulations in line with other consumer financial products; and more payments news from around the world.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau said Goldman Sachs failed to investigate tens of thousands of disputes, while Apple misled iPhone purchasers about interest-free payment options. The two companies were ordered to pay $89 million.

Section 1033 promised to increase competition in banking and improve the ability to offer novel payment methods, but experts say the regulation isn't clear enough to have a major impact.

Acting Comptroller of the Currency Michael Hsu said the bankruptcy of Synapse earlier this year highlights regulatory gaps around the state-based licensing of businesses that transfer money.

Stripe, Circle and Ripple all made deals in recent days to boost scale for a form of cryptocurrency that has struggled to reach mainstream consumers and businesses.

Deutsche Bank hired UBS' Aly Alibhai to head North American mergers and acquisitions; National Bankshares promoted Lara Ramsey to president; Apple Pay users in the U.S. and U.K. now have a pay later option through Klarna; and more in this week's banking news roundup.

The credit card lender's earnings beat analyst expectations, but it also reported weakness in spending and higher late payments. Amex boss Steve Squeri said consumers are "resilient" and credit remains strong.

During Thursday's earnings call, Chief Financial Officer John Greene told analysts that "everyday living expenses" are a challenge.

The Bank Policy Institute and The Clearing House filed a motion to join the central bank's defense of Regulation II.

Visa and Mastercard face pressure to lower payment charges globally, while the London-based fintech receives more fraud reports than the country's largest banks.

Purchases on the company's credit cards fell 4% as some customers traded down to cheaper goods or skipped discretionary spending. But CEO Brian Doubles said consumers remain in "pretty good shape" as they manage their budgets.

The Swedish company struck a deal to offload buy-now, pay-later loans that it originates in the U.K. as it looks for ways to free up capital ahead of its public debut. 

The investment banking giant is selling its General Motors credit card portfolio to Barclays, which is looking to grow and diversify its U.S. cards business. It's part of Goldman's retreat from consumer banking.

Bank of America, Wells Fargo and U.S. Bank are among the institutions taking advantage of regulatory tailwinds to get more aggressive.