Travel and food delivery merchants are particularly susceptible to installment-based decision-making.

Holding deposits would let Shopify expand popular embedded lending services to SMBs.

Financial services in Latin America are shifting into mobile, multi-rail ecosystems where platforms own the customer. As real-time payments and wallets drive constant engagement, banks are forced to embed or fade into the background.

Payments are becoming invisible as digital wallets evolve into commerce orchestration layers. The opportunity is clear, but growth hinges on balancing automation, trust, and control as ambient commerce reshapes how consumers shop and pay.

AI is turning lending into a constant, embedded experience, while alternative data is expanding who qualifies. Real-time signals enable timely, personalized offers—but reshape risk, timing, and control as borrowing moves into everyday digital moments.

A Santander-Mastercard pilot shows AI can transact—forcing brands to rethink the funnel.

Fintech has evolved from a disruptive force to a foundational layer of modern financial services.

Financial stress is turning everyday money management into a trust test for banks. As consumers expect real help in tough moments, fragmented tools and reactive alerts are no longer enough—forcing banks to rethink financial wellness.

Amazon has partnered with the fintech Slope to offer AI-underwritten financing to Amazon sellers and reduce friction in the lending process. Eligible US Amazon merchants will be able to apply for and access loans through their seller accounts. Amazon could position itself as the go-to platform for higher-volume sellers as well as a more sophisticated alternative to financial institutions—and compete aggressively based on accuracy of underwriting and the time between applications and loan funding. It is the wise move for banks to move into embedded lending for ecommerce rather than try to sell loans to these merchants directly.

Amazon added JPMorgan Chase, Santander, and Wells Fargo as financing partners for used vehicles on Amazon Auto, per Automotive News. Those banks now offer auto loans through the platform, which lets buyers apply for auto loans via Amazon in cities where sellers list used vehicles. The latest Amazon Auto partnerships illustrate embedded finance’s ascendancy into the mainstream. Megabanks and large regional banks will continue to participate in dedicated embedded finance partnerships, particularly with partners that need scale—demonstrating the maturity of a business model that 10 years ago didn’t even have a name.

As consumers turn to fintechs and payment providers for timely, solution-based support, banks are losing relevance. Staying in the game means shifting from product pushing to customer-led journeys.

The news: The banking sector is evolving towards embedded finance and enhanced data-sharing, allowing customers to access financial products and services from any provider, on any platform. This unbundling trend, driven by fintechs, could marginalize traditional banks. The article draws a parallel to the music industry's digital disruption, where unbundling (like iTunes) and streaming (like Spotify) fundamentally reshaped its value chain. This transformation, catalyzed by companies like Napster, created diverse new models. The opportunity: Similar to how streaming music providers anticipate continued growth, banking customers increasingly seek unbundled services, with fintechs outpacing traditional financial institutions in new checking account openings as consumers hold multiple accounts for specific needs.

The deal received conditional regulatory approval, shaking up the card space and larger financial service industry

The deal, which also includes FIS’s purchase of Global Payment’s issuing business, redraws lines that had previously been blurring

The payments provider maintained impressive POS growth given heightened competition in the space

Reeling from 2024’s challenges, financial institutions must embrace bold strategies in 2025 to future-proof their businesses in a landscape plagued by economic, competitive, and regulatory pressures.

Consumer banking will evolve from a product-centric model to a customer-centric one over the next few years. This will require significant changes to banks’ apps, pricing structures, and customer service.

Proximity mobile payments are on a growth tear, driven by strong spend per user. Here’s how providers are using wallet integration and new features to make proximity payments stickier.

In the third of five reports in our “Payments Ecosystem 2024” collection, we unpack how the lines between POS hardware and software are disappearing as providers push the innovation envelope.

Small and medium-sized businesses will account for almost half of the $35 trillion B2B payments market this year. They have been slow to digitize, handing B2B payment providers a unique set of needs to address.