Remittances

Early Warning Services' peer-to-peer payment platform Zelle is launching its own stablecoin, ZLUSD, which will allow it to open its network to remittances abroad. India will be the first country.

The Financial Technology Association has gone to court, claiming the state's remittance tax is invalid because it infringes on the dormant commerce clause and import-export clause in the U.S. Constitution, which prohibits states from enacting laws that discriminate against foreign commerce and from taxing imports and exports without Congress' consent.

The bill imposes a $10 fee on transactions under $500 with an additional 2% fee for transactions exceeding that threshold. It comes amid continued pressure from the Trump administration, which has been pressing states to enforce its restrictive immigration policies and mass deportations.

Whether red or blue, leaders share an affinity for battling fintech giants, as the liberal mayor is pressuring regulators to scuttle Western Union's plan to buy digital transfer Intermex, shortly following PayPal's 'DEI settlement' with the Trump administration.

The company is officially releasing a digital asset product that it first announced back in October.

Expenses and foreign exchange pressured Western Union; while Visa added more blockchains to its stablecoin settlement pilot. That and more in American Banker's global payments and fintech roundup.

Brazil's real-time payment rail is adding PayPal as an option for small- to medium-size business payments; HSBC is launching a Hong Kong dollar-denominated stablecoin; Sezzle expands BNPL; and more in this week's global payment roundup.

Western Union CEO Devin McGranahan said at the Digital Asset Summit in New York that stablecoins were a great way to earn float revenue on money moving through its network. But the possibilities didn't end there.

The U.K.-based banking giant will add a fintech that enables it to compete with Apple Pay, while Global Payments has added Uber Eats as part of its Genius-branded point of sale rollout. Plus: Visa has advanced account-to-account payments in the U.K. and more in the global payments and fintech roundup.

PayPal agrees to a $7 billion BNPL loan purchase agreement with Blue Owl Capital, while Revolut, which is building a financial superapp, is looking for permission to offer more banking products. That and more in the American Banker global payments and fintech roundup.

The money transfer fintech expanded its Austin office 200% to 90,000 square feet as it looks toward accelerating growth in North America. The company also separately inked a new partnership with Upwork to add Wise Platform as an infrastructure provider for freelancer payouts.

The cross-border transfer platform is broadening its business model with a subscription-based membership and products like a digital wallet and cash advances.

The digital bank is working with blockchain technology provider Lightspark to use Bitcoin networks to power its upcoming cross-border payments launch.

Analysts said trade war-related issues are pressuring the U.S./Mexico remittance corridor, lowering the value of the acquisition. Devin McGranahan told American Banker Intermex's technology and footprint provide a path for future expansion.

Western Union's North American money transfer business logged a decline in cross-border remittance revenue, led by drops in the U.S. to Mexico corridor, its largest remittance stream by far. The company is also bracing for the 1% remittance tax codified in the "Big Beautiful Bill," a levy that does not directly apply to banks.

The 3.5% excise tax proposed in President Trump's One Big Beautiful Bill comes with wide-ranging implications for financial institutions engaged in money transmission services.

A federal judge in California blocked rules requiring disclosures for payments near the Mexico border; Stripe has added more products as it bolsters investments in Asia; and more in the weekly global roundup.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the U.S. will ban certain Cuban payments, mirroring Trump's pressure on cross-border payments during his first administration.

Money remittance provider Wise said it "strongly disagrees" with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's characterization that it advertised inaccurate fees and did not properly disclose exchange rates.