Payments

Canada’s small businesses have lagged behind the U.S. in adopting digital commerce for a variety of reasons, but coronavirus might send things in a new direction.

It's still unclear how the coronavirus pandemic will alter payment habits over time — will consumers avoid cash out of fear of germs, or will they favor it as the one payment option that nearly all merchants accept? An impending change in interchange rates may tip the scales in cash's favor.

The coronavirus stimulus package has resurrected calls for the U.S. government to offer a central bank digital currency, public mobile wallets and postal banking—controversial ideas that are hard to pull off, but exist outside the U.S. and could dent interchange fees and private stablecoin projects like Facebook’s Libra.

Visa Inc., Mastercard Inc. and banks that issue credit cards went on high alert Wednesday when the National Restaurant Association asked President Donald Trump and congressional leaders to cut the so-called swipe fees incurred every time a customer pays with plastic.

Even for companies that support remote work, having an entire staff working from home on short notice opens new complications for B2B payments and accounts receivable.

TransferWise has partnered with Alipay to expand money remittance options for its users to instantly send Chinese yuan to friends and family in China.

In a scenario where employees regularly and accurately track and report their business expenses, this continuously updated data helps businesses make intelligent decisions quickly, says Fyle's Yash Madhusudan.

Governments are directly advancing real-time digital payments — a welcome move for Ripple, which is applying its relationship with MoneyGram and a growing base of eager partners to expand its network.

The nationwide lockdown in Italy has necessitated changes for Pellegrino personally, and for his business. The two worlds often intersect.

Taking the time to consider which technology to adopt for the new, expanded organization can be a critical success factor in the long run, says Bottomline Technologies' Jessica Cheney.