payments
Every story this desk has filed under payments, most recent first.
Stablecoin Payments Hit $482bn This Year Even as Supply Stops Growing
Allium data puts stablecoin payment volume up 45 percent so far in 2026, driven by card spending and new rails at Visa, Mastercard and Stripe, while the outstanding supply of the tokens themselves has flattened.
Mastercard Puts Stablecoin Balances Behind an Ordinary Card API
The Global Money Platform is the first major product out of Mastercard's BVNK acquisition, letting banks and fintechs hold, convert and spend both fiat and stablecoins through one interface. Nuvei and Marqeta are among the first users.
HSBC Tests Letting Software Agents Spend Tokenised Bank Deposits
A technical trial with Ant Digital had AI agents find services and pay for them in small amounts using HSBC's tokenised deposits, settling in real time with risk checks attached.
Memecoins Bought on a Credit Card, Coded as Digital Media
Test purchases through Robinhood Wallet and Fomo were classified as digital media rather than crypto, which earned card points on transactions the networks restrict.