Issuing/Originating

The number of card-accepting merchant locations around the world reached a record high of 88 million in 2021, up 2% over 2020 as measures to fight the pandemic helped stoke consumer usage of payment cards rather than alternatives like cash, according to research released Monday by London-based research firm RBR. …

As the holiday season continues and the cost-of-living rises, shoppers are searching for meaningful yet budget-friendly gifts for loved ones. Consumers need financial flexibility to make large purchases without using their entire paycheck to do so. Buy now, pay later solutions continue to rise in popularity as consumers search for …

Not all countries, companies, and persons will suffer equally from inflation in 2023, as Europe will see a decline in economic activity while the U.S. market will experience limited economic growth, forecasts the Mastercard Economics Institute. Food-service provider Sodexo North America’s InReach unit has contracted with payments provider Cantaloupe to upgrade 18,800 vending machiens and …

A new report from J.D. Power finds that small-business owners, struggling to offset inflation’s impact and supply-chain issues, continue to rely on their credit cards. American Express Co. cards for small businesses scored highest in the 2022 U.S. Small Business Credit Card Satisfaction Study from J.D. Power. This is the …

Jitters about the economy and the impact of the FTX implosion may have combined to clobber the cryptocurrency market, but new data shows that app downloads peaked as long as a year ago. In fact, downloads of crypto trading apps from the App Store, and Google Play, along with direct …

The messaging app Clickatell added updates to its Chat Commerce Platform, including a new integration of Chat 2 Pay, which allows travel brands to accept payments as part of business messages. The card-issuing platform Marqeta Inc. announced it has integrated Mastercard Track Instant Pay, which enables immediate payment of supplier invoices. The virtual-card platform Extend announced …

Curve OS Ltd. said it secured a deal with Credit Suisse to fund its first $1 billion in installment loans, via its Curve Flex product, in the United Kingdom, Europe, and the United States. London-based Curve announced Curve Flex in 2021. A survey from Bango PLC of 2,500 U.S. subscription users found that 65% said …

The growth of real-time payments over the next five years will gain momentum from cross-border transfers in a global economy, according to research released early Monday. Indeed, the total number of real-time transactions, also known as instant payments, worldwide will reach 376 billion in 2027, up 289% from 97 billion, …

Buy now pay later (BNPL) solutions have seen steady growth over the past few years. The lack of regulations and consumer protections have allowed financial institutions to maintain an edge in this product. But for how much longer? BNPL is now threatening the status quo, with 57% of customers saying …

American Express Co. announced AmEx Business Link, a business-to-business payments ecosystem for network issuing and acquiring clients to offer their business customers. Payments provider Newtek Business Services said it has received conditional approval from the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency to close on its acquisition of the National Bank of New …