Innovating Payments Top 3 News Headlines

Welcome to Innovating Payments Top 3 News Headlines. Payments are entering a new experience-driven era, ushered in by an accelerated transformation timeline due to COVID-19 and the growing digital appetite of customers, according to the World Payments Report 2021 published October 7, by Capgemini.

"As digital payments and mobile wallets become more the norm than the exception, payment providers must find ways to meet consumer hopes for speed and ease of use," said Anirban Bose, CEO of Capgemini's Financial Services and Group Executive Board Member in the company's news release. "To embrace the next generation of payments, banks must build a complimentary partnership ecosystem to keep up with the rate of change."

Also in the news, "First National Bank of Omaha, one of the top 25 credit card issuers in the U.S., has launched 'Slice by FNBO,' a buy now, pay later program that merchants can offer to online consumers," reports Payments Journal. And that's not all. B2B experts speak to what it takes to move B2B into the Digital Age at PYMNTS.com.

Read on to learn more.

1.  Capgemini's World Payments Report 2021 (Payments Journal)
In this release at the Capgemini site we have the notification and discussion summary of the latest world payments report from Capgemini, the Paris-based global consulting firm offering services in digital transformation, technology, and engineering. The report's findings echo (and to some extent confirm) what we and many other industry participants have been pointing out for the past year-plus: that the acceleration of digital financial operations is underway, and the way payments are done is and will continue to undergo rapid change. We have been informing members about the need for corporate banks especially to undergo a modernization initiative or risk being left to history books. Read more.
 

2. Card-Issuing Bank Takes on Fintechs with Its Own BNPL Plan (The Financial Brand)

Buy now, pay later credit grows increasingly hot, making it easy to dismiss these installment payment plans as a fad. But when a bank known for its conservative approach to business moves into this specialty, among only a handful of traditional institutions willing to challenge fintechs in the merchant-BNPL business, other financial institutions have to take notice. First National Bank of Omaha, one of the top 25 credit card issuers in the U.S., has launched "Slice by FNBO," a buy now, pay later program that merchants can offer to online consumers. While the basic program the bank is offering is a "pay in five" deal - one slice up front and four more every 15 days - the intent is to tailor the plans to merchants' needs and to the specific types of goods or services they offer. Read more.


3. Paper Checks' 'Long Tail': What It Takes to Move B2B Into the Digital Age (PYMNTS.com)
To paraphrase Mark Twain, the death of the check – the paper kind – has been greatly exaggerated. Stubborn things they are – certainly they've found wide berth in B2B payments, even though their overall usage has been declining. The pandemic, though, has not been the nail in the coffin. But there's evidence that paper can indeed be replaced by digital conduits. The check card gave way to the debit card in the 1970s, as consumers moved away from paper at the point of sale to digital, and as more merchants accepted digital payments. Read more.

With the use of digital and alternative payments surging, how is your financial institution meeting consumers' evolving preferences and need for speed? Is your organization considering a buy now, pay later program? Why or why not? What do you think it will take to move B2B payments into the digital age?

Check back soon for our next issue, which will again highlight the industry's most pressing and need-to-know developments. Until then, visit us online at Innovating Payments.

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