The buy now, pay later trend has gained enough steam that the major card networks can’t afford to ignore it. The latest evidence that the credit card giants want to hedge their bets came this week with the news that Discover Financial Services invested $30 million in Minneapolis-based Sezzle Inc., …

As banks, merchants, and fintechs scramble to win share in the payments business, they can easily lose sight of the fact that not all payments process properly. In fact, many don’t. Some two-thirds of organizations sustain more than 20,000 failed payments each day, while the toll taken globally by all …

Wireless connectivity at faster speeds and with more reliable service could be more widely available to the payments industry in as few as two years or less. Mastercard Inc. and Verizon Communications Inc.’s Verizon Business unit announced Tuesday morning they intend to work together to make 5G connectivity available in …

With volumes rising fast in both e-commerce generally and in the buy now, pay later business, BNPL payments provider Klarna AB has made a play to secure its position in both markets. The company announced Friday it has acquired Hero Towers Ltd., a 6-year-old social-shopping service that lets consumers interact …

The SPAC trend has come to the blockchain industry. Circle Internet Financial Inc. announced early Thursday it has agreed to be acquired by Concord Acquisition Corp., a special purpose acquisition company, in a deal that will take Circle public and values the 8-year-old company at $4.5 billion. That valuation would …

As the gig economy grows, startups are emerging to meet an expanding market for payment. An especially ambitious example is Willa Inc., which on Wednesday announced an $18-million Series A funding round led by FinTech Collective and including sums from existing investors EQT Ventures and Entrée Capital. The Ventura, Calif.-based …

Atlanta-based EVO Payments Inc. is working with global ATM technology provider KAL to allow banks and independent ATM deployers to quickly set up ATMs anywhere in Europe. The new service combines Germany-based KAL’s ATM software with EVO’s payments network, the parties said Tuesday. “We have created a highly efficient method …

PayPal Holdings Inc.’s decision to bring its Zettle point-of-sale technology to the U.S. market may not surprise observers, but the move presents some formidable challenges, chiefly in the form of the existing competition, some observers say. At the same time, they add, Zettle brings a potent brand that fills a …

Every so often, evidence emerges that size is not necessarily linked to influence. Nacha, the governing body for the nation’s automated clearing house network, on Tuesday announced that North American Banking Co. has joined the ranks of direct members of the association. Direct members constitute a group of more than …

Having completed its merger with a special purpose acquisition company, Payoneer Global Inc.’s common stock and warrants began trading Monday on the Nasdaq under the symbols PAYO and PAYOW, respectively. The shares were trading at $10.82 at mid-morning, slightly up from their opening price. “We are just scratching the surface …