Payments

It's a substance that literally grows on trees, and is just as compostable. But like any other proposed alternative to first-use plastic, wood comes at a premium to any issuers that want to adopt it.

To help historic restaurants facing dramatic losses when COVID struck, American Express rolled out grants to 25 needy restaurateurs. Four years later, the program is reaching twice as many establishments and the card network's investment has more than doubled.

A digital-payment trend that began during the COVID pandemic is being bolstered by features such as rewards and state ID storage.

The Federal Reserve scored some important legal victories in lawsuits challenging its discretion to grant or deny applicants for master accounts. But whether those victories will last through the appeals process or scrutiny from Congress is uncertain.

Payments Innovation Association CEO Brian Tate sees new trends in how technology is transforming payments technologies that are secure, safe and fair.

The credit and debit card-issuing giant's Chase Media Solutions will help fund new loyalty programs to offset downward pressure on card-swipe fees and the potential erosion of card spending volume from the rise of faster payments and open banking, experts say.

Visa is working with Thunes; LemFi and Western Union to expand its reach; Swift has completed testing of 38 global digital currencies, and more.

Weekend direct deposit would benefit workers, consumers and businesses. The Federal Reserve itself said it was in favor of such an expansion nearly a decade ago. There is no better time than now.

Banking regulators and the Department of Justice must decide whether the blockbuster deal raises antitrust concerns. Looming over their analyses are questions about how broadly or narrowly to define the relevant markets.

Ambitious women who feel trapped in their roles sometimes find themselves competing against others with the same goals. An effective way to advance may require stepping off the most obvious path, according to executives sharing their personal experiences at American Banker's Payments Forum.