What shapes consumer transactions and payment technologies, and where is it going?

Any conventional wisdom about payments—how they’re made, the currencies being used, the cards presently in favor—doesn’t last long before the next wave of technology, innovation, and regulation. Javelin’s analysts conduct research at the forefront of payments, identifying the emerging trends for financial services companies and payments providers and offering insight into how they can best position themselves not just for what is current but also for what is coming.

Payments Research

Reports

Biometrics Use Is on the Rise for Payments: Banks and Merchants, Get Ready to Adopt Faces and Fingertips for Authentication

  • Javelin Report
  • Date: October 25, 2021
  • Author(s): Tim Sloane
  • Research Topic(s): Credit, Emerging
Biometrics steadily replaces legacy authentication methods. A new report from Mercator Advisory Group explores the leading developments in the field of physiological and behavioral biometrics, including successful implementation cases by major ...

CECL: Proven in the Field and Ready for Prime Time

  • Impact Note
  • Date: October 18, 2021
  • Author(s): Brian Riley
  • Research Topic(s): Credit
Bankcard accounting requirements for recognizing credit losses at top banks became subject to more conservative rules following the Great Recession and Dodd-Frank. The process, which took effect in 4Q 2019, helped the industry prepare for unanti...

Request for Pay: Opportunities Await, but It’s a Long Road to Mainstream Adoption

The U.S. payments market is beginning to see the launch of Request-for-Pay (RfP) products using the messaging system developed by The Clearing House and tied to the RTP network. RfP solutions currently being deployed have limited audiences, but ...

How to Build a Production-Ready Banking API Portal and Avoid EU Mistakes

  • Javelin Report
  • Date: October 5, 2021
  • Author(s): Tim Sloane
  • Research Topic(s): Emerging
Mercator Advisory Group’s latest report ranks 12 API management platforms based on three critical operational areas that have caused delays in the rollout of the PSD2 mandated APIs in Europe. For those planning an API portal deployment, this rep...

Commercial Credit Cards: North America Market Review and Forecast, 2019-2025

A new Mercator Advisory Group research report reviews developments in the commercial credit card industry during the past 18 months and looks at how the future is shaping up.

Internet of Things (IoT) Technology and Consumer Devices: Machine Triggered Payments Continue Growth in U.S. Households

IoT transactions see continued growth in U.S. households. The sustained growth of smart home devices in the U.S. has created a market for machine triggered, IoT purchases of household goods. New research by Mercator Advisory Group explores the ...

18th Annual U.S. Closed-Loop Prepaid Cards Market Forecasts, 2020-2025

  • Javelin Report
  • Date: September 17, 2021
  • Author(s): David Nelyubin
  • Research Topic(s): Prepaid
The report titled 18th Annual U.S. Closed-Loop Prepaid Cards Market Forecasts, 2020–2025 provides an analysis of the growth and development of the prepaid cards industry through 2025. The report examines loads, growth potential, and market dynam...

In Search of a Profit: 2020 Credit Card Return on Assets Slipped During COVID but Remain Strong

  • Impact Note
  • Date: September 15, 2021
  • Author(s): Brian Riley
  • Research Topic(s): Credit
With revenue streams coming from fees, interchange, and interest, credit cards generate returns significantly higher than retail banking when measured by return on assets (ROA). In 2020, credit card issuers returned a 2.40% ROA, significantly be...

Acquirer Market Spotlight: Sports and E-sports Betting

  • Impact Note
  • Date: September 13, 2021
  • Author(s): Rachel Gore
  • Research Topic(s): Merchant
Rapid growth in sports betting is gaining attention not only from investors and regulators but in the world of banking and fintech too. Even though the regulatory environment is friendlier, there are still risks in servicing this nascent industr...

International Prepaid Market Developments and Growth Trends

  • Javelin Report
  • Date: September 3, 2021
  • Author(s): Laura Handly
  • Research Topic(s): Global, Prepaid
New Mercator Advisory Group report explores opportunities and trajectories within the global prepaid market as e-commerce and demand for alternatives to cash rises.

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