Our bi-weekly news roundup collects some of the headlines in payments and fintech to watch, giving leaders across industries (or fintech enthusiasts) a quick glance at some of the news in the space. In Flywire’s 10+ years in delivering the most complex, high value payments, we’ve had a unique opportunity to work with many different organizations in the fintech and payments ecosystem. We’ve seen changes in how clients get paid, how their customers want to pay and how central the payments experience has become – not just across the industries we focus on, but every industry.
Here are some of the fintech and payments headlines from April 6- April 19.
Headlines
Mastercard using AI, open banking to manage faster payments risk - American Banker
Mastercard, using technology from its 2020 Finicity acquisition, is developing software that uses machine-learning to more accurately pull ACH payments from consumer accounts, and reduce overdraft and payment risk to merchants, banks and payment service providers. The technology is currently being deployed for rental payments, according to the article, with plans to focus on education, healthcare and insurance in future deployments.
Finastra collaborates with Microsoft to bring embedded financing options to thousands of businesses with Banking as a Service - PR Newswire.com
Businesses that run Microsoft Dynamics 365 will be able to access Finastra financing solutions directly within the ERP system, with the business’ consent. The aim is to ease access to financing options and speed lending applications. The Finastra SME embedded finance solution is expected to go live in North America this summer.
Deserve Launches Commercial Credit Card Platform That Empowers Banks and Business-to-Business (B2B) Companies to Issue Co-Branded Credit and Charge Cards - Business Wire
Credit card technology startup Deserve released software that it says enables customers to launch commercial credit cards in months. This includes commercial card programs on either a white-label basis, or by fully embedding into partners’ digital capabilities through APIs and SDKs. Read more in Tearsheet’s “Credit card-as-a-service: 5 questions with Deserve’s CEO Kalpesh Kalpadia”
Clearing service DTCC pushes ahead with CBDC prototype 'Project Lithium' - The Block
The Depository Trust & Clearing Corporation (DTCC) is developing a prototype of how a central bank digital currency (CBDC) might work in the U.S. in practice. The model will use distributed ledger technology (DLT). DTCC provides clearing and settlement services for the financial markets.
Is Empathy the Key to Healthcare Collections in 2022? - HIT Consultant
Finvi’s Jada Lewis makes a case for how to amplify empathetic patient treatment outside of the clinical setting, by pushing a similar mindset into revenue cycle management technologies and partnerships.
What is the future for privacy legislation and how should businesses prepare? - Reuters
On the heels of Virginia’s recent amendments to its data privacy laws, Reuters provides a good roundup of data privacy legislation on the docket for 2022, including what’s passed and what to watch.
The Most Valuable U.S. Banking Brands in 2022 - The Financial Brand
After two turbulent years of pandemic-related disruption, bank brands worldwide are on the rebound. An in-depth report on bank brand valuations finds that values overall are rising for the first time in three years. Chinese banks dominate the top four spots, but five U.S. banks ranked in the top 10, with Bank of America earning no. 5 in the world.
From Flywire
Flywire’s Mike Massaro talks value of vertical payments software on TD Ameritrade show
Flywire CEO Mike Massaro sat down with Market on Close contributor Caroline Woods of TD Ameritrade network recently to talk about innovation in payments and much more.
PCI DSS v4.0 is here. What’s new, and are you ready for it?
As a member of the PCI Security Standards Council, Flywire was one of the more than 200 organizations that contributed to the changes, a process that kicked off in 2017. It was truly collaborative, with an end product that reflects 6,000 pieces of feedback. Changes are significant, and we provide an overview here.
B2B: 3 must-see receivables stats from AFP’s 2022 Payments Cost Benchmarking Survey
When it comes to B2B payment options, data from a recent survey completed by the Association for Financial Professionals (AFP) reinforces the importance of B2B businesses supporting many different payment methods.
Travel: Madrid & Beyond modernizes international travel payments with Flywire
With automated payment reminders and clear visibility into who has paid and whether funds have been received, luxury travel company Madrid & Beyond is saving several thousand euros a month with Flywire and providing outstanding payment experiences for customers.
Report of the week
B2B Digital Payments Tracker - PYMNTS.com and American Express
PYMNTS.com and American Express explore challenges financial institutions have in meeting the needs of corporate clients in the recent report. Challenges include offering portals, difficulty reconciling invoices, lack of payment integration with ERP systems and an inability to manage processes via mobile channels, according to PYMNTS.
Stat of the week
40% - firms experiencing hiring challenges in The CFO Survey survey that reported implementing or exploring the use of technology to reduce reliance on labor. The long-running, comprehensive quarterly survey is a collaboration between Duke University’s Fuqua School of Business and the Federal Reserve banks of Richmond and Atlanta.
Conversation starter
Pet travel startup Avvinue announces beta launch - PYMNTS.com
More than 2 million pets travel on commercial airlines in the U.S. annually. That’s according to pet travel startup Avvinue, which launched software in public beta on April 11 (National Pet Day) that aims to make it easier to find and book pet-friendly flight options. Avvinue says it is the only self-service pet travel booking platform.