Payments

The lender behind the credit cards for Gap, J.C. Penney and other retailers took a large provision for loan losses and abandoned full-year earnings guidance as the nationwide shutdowns tied to the coronavirus pandemic have led to a sharp decline in spending on its cards.

Many companies have yet to take advantage of automation when it comes to testing their payment channels, a commonly overlooked but vitally important area, says Paragon Application Systems’ Steve Gilde.

Google’s reported plan to offer its own version of the Apple Card is less of a play for credit and more of a play for its mobile users' bank accounts.

Overall credit card spending is down 32% while debit card purchases have declined by 12% for the week ending April 12.

Coinbase Inc., one of the most popular U.S. cryptocurrency exchanges, said it hired Barclays Capital Inc. veteran Brett Tejpaul to serve as head of institutional coverage.

The trend to mobile is accelerating due to government stimulus checks, closed bank branches and the move to e-commerce, sayd Mitek's Michael Diamond.

When we go back to normal, it's our opportunity to start making long-overdue infrastructure upgrades, says Nvoicepay's Derek Halpern.

Fast-moving payments innovation was already threatening comfortable connections between consumers and businesses before the pandemic turned the trend into an outright crisis.

Contactless technology provider Mobeewave is launching tap-to-phone features that remove current contactless payment limits for merchants and consumers globally.

The U.S. Treasury Department is in talks with some airlines about accepting their loyalty programs as collateral against government loans to help them weather the coronavirus crisis.

The best solutions consider both the user and the device, says says Fingerprints' Jonas Andersson.

Just as U.S. lawmakers are ramping up demand for a digital dollar, Facebook's Libra project is dialing back its scope.

As the market deals with the short-term challenge of getting stimulus payments into the hands of citizens, the country has a unique opportunity to put the unbanked and underbanked on a long-term path to electronic payment methods, Jim Johnson of FIS says.

As the market deals with the short-term challenge of getting trillions of dollars of relief and stimulus payments into the hands of citizens in the coming weeks and months, we as a country have a unique opportunity to put our unbanked and underbanked citizens on a long-term path to electronic payment methods, says FIS' Jim Johnson.

Banco Santander has launched a new standalone international money transfer service called PagoFX in the U.K. to compete with fintechs.

Airwallex has raised $160 million in a Series D fundraising round to expand global payment offerings for small businesses and enterprises.

Facebook Inc. and its partners said their Libra cryptocurrency project will now support multiple versions of the digital coins, the majority of which will be backed by individual fiat currencies like the U.S. dollar, as part of changes made to appease skeptical regulators worldwide.

Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. is raising cash by selling loyalty points and offering bonds as the company rides out the coronavirus crisis.

As phishing and other attacks mount, a personal ID number can act as a second authentication factor, says LogRhythm Labs' James Carder.

As millions of U.S. consumers are beginning to see stimulus checks electronically deposited into their bank accounts as part of the CARES Act, many companies are wondering how Americans will spend these funds.