What shapes consumer transactions and payment technologies, and where is it going?
Rapid changes in technology, regulation, and consumer behavior continue to reshape the payments industry. Javelin’s payments research team tracks commercial and consumer payment trends, evaluates emerging payment technologies, and anticipates what’s next. Through unbiased research, data-driven insights, and actionable advice, we help financial institutions, payments providers, and technology companies develop strategies that position them for success in a rapidly evolving market.
Payments Research
Reports
Credit Cards in 2027: Sometimes, Boring is Good
A steady credit environment could make 2027 a year of opportunity rather than disruption for card issuers. Stable delinquencies and manageable charge-offs provide a solid foundation, but persistent inflation, unemployment, consumer financial str...
Building the Case for Stablecoin Remittances: Javelin Models the Total Addressable Market
Stablecoins have the potential to reshape cross-border payments, but the industry often confuses transaction volume and asset value with actual revenue opportunity. Javelin sizes the U.S. stablecoin remittance market using measurable payment flo...
Migration Not Flight: The Impacts of Stablecoins on Deposits
Stablecoin growth could shift hundreds of billions of dollars out of conventional deposit products, with the greatest pressure falling on payment-intensive consumer, commercial, and treasury balances. This report estimates the scale of that migr...
Turning Everyday Debit Into Deeper Loyalty Through Rewards
As interchange revenue pressures make traditional cashback programs increasingly difficult to sustain, issuers are focusing on loyalty strategies that deepen customer engagement across banking products. But many consumers, especially older gener...
Will Agents Need Wallets? Why Payment Infrastructure Matters
Agentic commerce is beginning to reshape how consumers discover products and complete transactions. Yet the future of payments will depend less on which, and which type of, consumer-facing agent wins and more on the infrastructure that enables a...
2026 General-Purpose Reloadable Card Scorecard
Javelin’s 2026 General-Purpose Reloadable Card Scorecard shows which prepaid debit card programs are setting the standard for cost, everyday usability, and differentiated benefits. Readers will learn how PayPal, Cash App, Wisely Direct, and othe...
Card-Linked Offers: Keep Rewarding Consumers, but Shift the Narrative
Card-linked offers are emerging as one of the most important shifts in credit card rewards. They give issuers a merchant-funded way to deliver value while reducing dependence on interchange-funded points and miles. Powered by AI, embedded in gro...
As AI Costs Grow, Here’s How Banks Can Manage the Economics
AI is spreading through banks faster than any technology on record, bringing new opportunities alongside rising costs and operational complexity. As pricing models evolve and AI usage expands across all business units, financial institutions nee...
2026 Prepaid Regulatory Update: States Focus on Fraud Fight and Cash-Outs
Gift cards remain consumers’ favorite present, and a wave of new laws is regulating the fraud, theft, and forgery of prepaid products. States are increasingly targeting criminals instead of card programs, while emerging rules around sports betti...
Cash Isn’t Dead: How ATMs Are Evolving to Secure a Digital Payments Future
Cash may no longer be the center of consumer payments, but it is far from irrelevant. As digital payments gain share, consumers still depend on cash for access, certainty, budgeting, and immediate settlement—and ATMs remain the critical infrastr...