Industry-Wide Trends
Cross-cutting trends shaping the consumer financing industry.
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- 30
- Originals
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- Topics covered
- 4
- Last published
- Sep 11
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FinTechs See 146 Million Reasons to Target Credit Unions
Credit unions are teaming up with FinTechs to offer modern financing to 146 million members, creating new lending opportunities for merchants.
For retail operators and service providers, this shift signals a major change in where your customers might get their financing. Credit unions (CUs) are no longer just sleepy local banks. They are aggressively partnering with FinTech firms to offer modern lending products like Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL) and instant point-of-sale credit. With 146 million members, CUs represent a massive, underserved market of consumers who generally have higher trust in their financial institution than they do in big national banks. What this means for your business is a more diverse lending landscape. As CUs integrate FinTech tools, your customers may soon have access to better interest rates and higher approval limits through the institutions they already belong to. The report highlights that CUs are moving away from build-it-yourself technology. Instead, they are buying ready-made financing platforms. This allows them to compete directly with major lenders like Affirm or Synchrony. If you currently offer financing, expect to see more 'white-label' credit union options entering the merchant space. This could lower your transaction fees as CUs often operate with lower overhead than commercial banks. Keep an eye on local credit union partnerships as a way to offer more competitive terms to your loyal customer base.
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Curated · technology
49% of Firms Use Bank Account Data to Flag Fraud
New data reveals that most businesses are sitting on underutilized bank account data that could drastically reduce financing fraud.
Curated · industry-news
FinTechs Are Shopping for Very Different Charters
Fintech giants are becoming formal banks, promising more stable and diverse financing options for retail operators and their customers.
Curated · regulation
Industry backs UK National Payments Vision but confidence it will work lags
UK industry leaders support a major overhaul of national payment systems but remain skeptical about the government's ability to execute the plan.
Curated · technology
Hungary's CIB Bank offers customers free contactless payment rings
CIB Bank and Visa partner to offer contactless payment rings, signaling a shift toward wearable, friction-free checkout experiences for retail operators.
Curated · technology
Blik records first agentic payment transaction
Blik completes its first AI-driven transaction, ushering in an era where software agents hunt for products and execute payments automatically.
Curated · technology
AI Agents Need Permissioned Funding Sources. Not Company Bank Accounts.
AI agents are moving into commerce, requiring new programmable payment methods that move beyond traditional bank accounts and credit cards.
Curated · technology
OpenAI Focuses On Investment Banking Ahead of Wider Financial Services Rollout
OpenAI launches a dedicated financial services platform, signaling a major shift toward AI-driven credit modeling and personalized consumer finance.
Curated · technology
Cash App Pilots No-Fee Business Tools for Sole Proprietors
Cash App’s new no-fee pilot lets sole proprietors accept payments and manage earnings directly through personal accounts.
Curated · regulation
The 9/11 attacks marked a sea change in bank regulation
How post-9/11 security laws created the identity verification and KYC hurdles that define modern consumer financing.
Curated · technology
US Bank partners with Stellar to test stablecoin
U.S. Bank tests Stellar-based stablecoins, signaling a future of faster settlements and lower transaction friction for merchants.
Curated · regulation
Regulators allow more banks to opt for 18-month exam cycle
Federal regulators extend the exam cycle for nearly 200 community banks, potentially easing operational burdens for local consumer lending partners.
Curated · technology
Experian Deploys Real-Time AI Decisioning Across Lending Marketplaces
Experian’s new AI engine speeds up credit approvals and improves offer accuracy for consumers shopping for personal loans and credit cards.
Curated · technology
Finix unveils Android-enabled payment devices
Finix expands its hardware suite with Android tablets designed to unify in-store and online payment experiences for modern retailers.
Curated · technology
Coinbase and Moov Team to Help Community Banks Embrace Stablecoins
Coinbase and Moov are bringing stablecoin settlement to community banks, promising faster payment speeds and real-time funding for local businesses.
Curated · regulation
NYDF issues cybersecurity guidance
New York's DFS issues strict new cybersecurity risk assessment rules that will impact how lenders and merchants handle consumer data.
Curated · lender-updates
Upstart: Lending’s oldest truism is not true for us
Upstart’s AI-driven Q2 results suggest a new era where high approval rates and lender profitability can coexist, stabilizing credit access for shoppers.
Curated · regulation
DOJ’s New Fraud Division Puts Data at Center of Corporate Enforcement
The DOJ’s new National Fraud Enforcement Division will use proactive data analytics to hunt for corporate misconduct in financial transactions.
Curated · industry-news
Walmart Expands Tap to Pay as Amazon Builds Its AI Capacity
Walmart ends its holdout on Apple Pay and Google Pay, signaling a major shift toward universal contactless payment acceptance in retail.
Curated · regulation
Lawsuit accuses Bowman, Fed of 'rigging' comment process
A new lawsuit alleges the Fed 'rigged' the comment process for capital rules, a move that could ultimately impact consumer credit availability.
Curated · regulation
Trump renews his calls to cap credit card fees
Renewed political pressure to cap credit card swipe fees could lead to significant cost savings for retail merchants and service providers.
Curated · technology
Arva AI opens Research Lab to banish human-in-the-loop for financial crime and fraud
Arva AI launches new research lab to automate high-risk financial decisions, promising faster approvals and less friction for consumer financing.
Curated · regulation
Trump pledges card fee cuts, again
Proposed caps on credit card fees could slash merchant overhead but may lead to tighter consumer credit approvals.
Curated · industry-news
Chime outgrew bank partner model, CEO says
Chime’s acquisition of Stride Bank marks a shift away from the partner-bank model, promising faster product innovation and tighter regulatory control.
Curated · lender-updates
Zip explores an EWA play
BNPL provider Zip considers adding Earned Wage Access to its U.S. toolkit, aiming to smooth out consumer spending cycles for merchants.
Curated · technology
Nacha forms Next-Gen Currency Project Team focused on stablecoins and tokenized deposits
The governing body for ACH payments is exploring how to integrate stablecoins and digital assets into the mainstream payment ecosystem.
Curated · technology
EPC delays address format migration timeline
European payment authorities extend the timeline for mandatory address data changes, giving merchants more time to update payment systems.
Curated · technology
How Casap is rethinking dispute resolution with agentic AI
New AI agents aim to automate the payment dispute lifecycle, cutting resolution times and reducing manual workloads for merchants.
Curated · technology
AI agents don't have to fail in order to cause major problems for banks
AI agents in finance can create hidden liabilities by being 'too efficient' at meeting goals while ignoring safety and compliance rules.
Curated · technology
Bank FOMO fueling AI spending, Accenture exec says
Banks are spending big on AI to stay competitive, but retailers won't see significant changes to financing efficiency until lenders overhaul their workflows.