Digital payments

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

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.

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.

Though NFC adoption is still somewhat patchwork in the U.S., new data suggests contactless payment transaction volume is rising during the coronavirus outbreak, giving an advantage to banks and merchants that enabled it early.

Commonwealth of Australia (CBA) reports digital wallet users spent a AUS$1 billion (about $630 million) in March 2020, a high for the bank that's part of an acceleration to digital wallets and contactless cards during the coronavirus crisis.

While reports of toilet paper and hand-sanitizer shortages may be common stories on the nightly news, one consumer goods category is flying off the shelves at an even faster pace, one never seen before – guns and ammunition, increasing payments volume for gun shops, a merchant category financial service providers traditionally avoid.

The coronavirus has accelerated a move toward a public option for digital wallets that would tie government authentication to payment transactions. If successful, this could be the catalyst for a national digital identity system.

The coronavirus pandemic is likely to force a great leap forward in the fight to crush paper checks, which still account for about half of B2B payments, by moving more invoice payments online.

The U.S. Treasury is talking to digital payments providers about quick ways to disburse funds to recipients of stimulus checks within a couple of weeks, but payments industry experts foresee troubling security issues even with most of the obvious options.

Mastercard has increased the contactless payment limit to CA$250 across Canada to provide consumers with a safer way to pay during the coronavirus pandemic.

Admitting it "may be professional suicide" to take the reins in the midst of a global health crisis, Brady Harris says his role atop Dwolla's management chain will be "a real test of my leadership abilities."

Transit systems are suffering a dramatic loss in ridership, and must find a way to welcome back riders after the coronavirus pandemic ends, since many commuters will have canceled their monthly passes.

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.

For a growing number of people, the coronavirus has disrupted their daily lives in how they work, where they eat and how they spend their money. This drastic change has caused a boom in some sectors of the economy and a bust in other areas.

Growing recognition that coronavirus can survive on hard surfaces for up to 72 hours — making it riskier to use PIN pads and touchscreens at the point of sale — is causing merchants around the world to rethink payment technology, especially at supermarkets.

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.

It’s a rare occurrence for a business to receive a huge business spike while also shutting parts of the operation, but that’s where the coronavirus has landed Farmstead.

With coronavirus taking a significant chunk out of physical retail and services, the use of call centers and phone interaction with customers becomes even more important.