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\r\n\r\n\r\nThe post Shopify Debuts Tinker App for AI-Powered Stores appeared first on PYMNTS.com.
\n", "content_text": "Shopify launched Tinker on Thursday (March 26), a free mobile app that replaces the fragmented AI subscription stack most merchants currently navigate with a single guided environment for building brand assets, storefronts, social content and visual identity from plain-language inputs.\r\n\t\r\n\t\t\r\n\t\r\n\r\n\r\n\t\nAccording to Shopify’s announcement, Tinker consolidates more than 100 specialized AI tools, drawing on models from OpenAI, Google and Anthropic, organized not by model name or capability but by output: merchants browse by what they want to create, not by which tool produces it. The app covers images, videos, logos, product visuals and 360-degree product views. Each tool surfaces curated examples so a merchant knows exactly what it generates before committing any input.\nThe core mechanic Shopify built around is prompt abstraction. Rousseau Kazi, director of product at Shopify, said in the announcement that the team writes “very long prompts that are optimized for quality” and then reduces them to a few simple fields for the merchant to fill out.\nThe merchant describes their need in plain language; Tinker handles the technical prompting in the background. A brand described in one sentence generates a logo. A product photo becomes a social media video. Multiple creations can run simultaneously, so a founder can queue a batch of assets during a commute and review the results on arrival.\nTinker also maintains continuity across sessions. Because all assets live in a single environment, the app applies context from prior creations to new ones, preserving visual and brand consistency without having the merchant manually carry references between disconnected tools. When a new AI model launches from any of its provider partners, Tinker updates automatically, removing the recurring cost and learning curve of separately adopting each new capability.\nLess Friction\nThe specific merchant cases Shopify cited in the announcement illustrate the operational problem Tinker aims to address. Lena, founder of jewelry brand Loire, generated more than 150 brand images for her store in her first month using the app, assets that consistently matched her feedback on the first or second attempt. The alternative, professional photography in the U.S., runs approximately $50 per shot, meaning a single product photographed from two angles costs $100 before any editing or reshooting. For a brand still building its initial catalog, that unit cost forecloses iteration entirely.\nYukiko, founder of supplement brand Allie Beauty Protein, identified a different constraint: general-purpose generative AI tools produce visually compelling images but inaccurately render product label text, a significant commercial problem for supplement brands that are legally required to include nutritional information on packaging. Tinker’s specialized prompting layer, built for specific output types rather than general-purpose generation, resolved that gap for her use case.\nShopify’s Broader Agentic Bet\nAs reported by PYMNTS, Shopify’s AI Store Builder, introduced in May 2025, already lets merchants generate full store layouts from descriptive keywords without writing code. Tinker extends that capability into the creative layer above the storefront, handling the brand assets and marketing materials that fill a store once its structure is in place.\nThe strategic logic behind both tools connects to where Shopify sees commerce heading. As reported by PYMNTS, Shopify President Harley Finkelstein argued at the Upfront Summit in March 2026 that agentic AI will act as a personal shopper, surfacing products based on contextual fit rather than keyword bids or paid placement.\nIn that environment, the quality and consistency of a merchant’s brand presentation carry more commercial weight than they do in a search-optimized storefront. Tinker is a standalone app for anyone who wants to experiment with AI tools before agentic discovery becomes the primary commerce channel.\nThe broader market context reinforces the timing. According to Google Labs, the company introduced Photoshoot on its Pomelli platform in February 2026, a free tool that converts basic product images into studio and lifestyle imagery using its Nano Banana model, with brand context automatically applied from stored business information.\nFor all PYMNTS AI coverage, subscribe to the daily\u00a0AI\u00a0Newsletter.\n\r\n\r\nThe post Shopify Debuts Tinker App for AI-Powered Stores appeared first on PYMNTS.com.", "date_published": "2026-03-27T12:37:25-04:00", "date_modified": "2026-03-29T20:09:31-04:00", "authors": [ { "name": "PYMNTS", "url": "https://www.pymnts.com/author/pymnts/", "avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/679fcf5c2ed5358e99e8e23b22e3b5d761e37bdb76fa7b0e13d8ecd9ff01bf88?s=512&d=blank&r=g" } ], "author": { "name": "PYMNTS", "url": "https://www.pymnts.com/author/pymnts/", "avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/679fcf5c2ed5358e99e8e23b22e3b5d761e37bdb76fa7b0e13d8ecd9ff01bf88?s=512&d=blank&r=g" }, "image": "https://www.pymnts.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/Shopify1.jpg", "tags": [ "artificial intelligence", "ecommerce", "Editor's Picks", "News", "PYMNTS News", "shopify", "Tinker", "Retail" ] }, { "id": "https://www.pymnts.com/?p=3590049", "url": "https://www.pymnts.com/artificial-intelligence-2/2026/amazon-perplexity-and-openai-compete-to-own-the-first-click-in-healthcare/", "title": "Amazon, Perplexity and OpenAI Compete to Own the First Click in Healthcare", "content_html": "Amazon expanded its Health AI agent from the One Medical app to Amazon.com and the Amazon mobile app, and Perplexity launched Perplexity Health, a suite of personal health data connectors.
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\r\n\r\n\r\nThe post Amazon, Perplexity and OpenAI Compete to Own the First Click in Healthcare appeared first on PYMNTS.com.
\n", "content_text": "Amazon expanded its Health AI agent from the One Medical app to Amazon.com and the Amazon mobile app, and Perplexity launched Perplexity Health, a suite of personal health data connectors.\r\n\t\r\n\t\t\r\n\t\r\n\r\n\r\n\t\nThe same week, lab testing company Function announced a connector that lets its members pipe lab results and clinician-reviewed summaries directly into Perplexity Health.\nThose moves follow OpenAI\u2019s ChatGPT Health and Microsoft\u2019s Copilot Health on March 12, bringing the number of major AI platforms with dedicated consumer health products to five in under three months.\nIn the U.S., 3 in 5 adults used AI tools for health purposes in the past three months. About 70% of AI health conversations occur outside clinic hours, and roughly 1.6 million to 1.9 million messages per week on ChatGPT focus on health insurance questions, according to PYMNTS coverage. The platforms responding to that demand are not building the same product. They are building different layers of the same stack.\nVertical Stack: Amazon Owns the Full Care Workflow\nAmazon builds vertically. Its Health AI agent does not hand users off to another system. It handles the question, the appointment, the prescription and the specialist referral inside one product, connected to one provider network.\nHealth AI answers health questions, explains lab results and medical records, manages prescription renewals and connects users to One Medical providers through message, video or face-to-face visits. The system runs on Amazon Bedrock as a multi-agent architecture: A core agent handles patient communication, sub-agents oversee specific tasks, auditor agents review conversations in real time, and sentinel agents escalate to human providers when needed.\nPrescriptions are routed to Amazon Pharmacy or any pharmacy of the user\u2019s choice. One Medical maintains clinical partnerships with Rush University System for Health and Cleveland Clinic for specialist referrals, with Health AI routing patients across those networks.\nHorizontal Stack: Perplexity Aggregates Any Source\nPerplexity builds horizontally. Perplexity Health does not tie users to a specific provider network. It pulls data from across fragmented health data and surfaces answers from it all at once.\nPerplexity Health launches with connectors for Apple Health, electronic health records from more than 1.7 million care providers, and wearable platforms including Fitbit, Ultrahuman and Withings.\nA question about resting heart rate draws on that user\u2019s cardiac history, recent bloodwork, and activity logs. Answers draw from clinical guidelines and peer-reviewed journals, with each response connected directly to source material.\nHealth data is encrypted in transit and at rest, is not used to train AI models and is not sold to third parties. The product is available to Pro and Max subscribers in the U.S. on iOS and at perplexity.ai/health.\nFunction is a company that provides lab testing and clinician-reviewed biomarker insights. It announced a partnership with Perplexity Health to integrate this data into the AI system, with CEO Jonathan Swerdlin noting, \u201cAI is most powerful when it\u2019s personal,\u201d as the collaboration helps turn fragmented health data into useful insights.\nOpenAI and the Scale of the Shift\nOpenAI established the category in January with ChatGPT Health as reported by PYMNTS. The usage numbers behind the launch explain the competitive urgency. More than 230 million people globally ask health and wellness questions on ChatGPT every week, according to TechCrunch.\nAmong U.S. adults who used AI for health in the past three months, 55% used it to check symptoms, 48% to understand medical terms and 44% to learn about treatment options, according to OpenAI.\nAs PYMNTS covered, AI agents in healthcare are moving from pilots to live deployments across patient engagement, care coordination, clinical documentation and chronic care management.\nAmazon operates a vertically integrated model, combining its AI, provider network, pharmacy and billing into a single system. Perplexity takes a horizontal approach, offering one interface that sits across providers, wearables and labs. While OpenAI brings the largest distribution channel, with 230 million weekly health users and a multiyear lead in clinical model development. Each approach is distinct, but together they point to a consumer healthcare system where AI becomes the first point of interaction before any clinician is involved.\nFor all PYMNTS AI coverage, subscribe to the daily AI\u00a0Newsletter.\n\r\n\r\nThe post Amazon, Perplexity and OpenAI Compete to Own the First Click in Healthcare appeared first on PYMNTS.com.", "date_published": "2026-03-25T09:00:44-04:00", "date_modified": "2026-03-25T12:37:17-04:00", "authors": [ { "name": "PYMNTS", "url": "https://www.pymnts.com/author/pymnts/", "avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/679fcf5c2ed5358e99e8e23b22e3b5d761e37bdb76fa7b0e13d8ecd9ff01bf88?s=512&d=blank&r=g" } ], "author": { "name": "PYMNTS", "url": "https://www.pymnts.com/author/pymnts/", "avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/679fcf5c2ed5358e99e8e23b22e3b5d761e37bdb76fa7b0e13d8ecd9ff01bf88?s=512&d=blank&r=g" }, "image": "https://www.pymnts.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/Amazon-Perplexity-OpenAI-healthcare1.jpg", "tags": [ "AI", "Amazon", "Editor's Picks", "Healthcare", "News", "OpenAI", "Perplexity", "PYMNTS News", "artificial intelligence" ] }, { "id": "https://www.pymnts.com/?p=3588301", "url": "https://www.pymnts.com/artificial-intelligence-2/2026/national-ai-framework-would-test-banks-ai-decision-models/", "title": "Proposed National AI Framework Would Test Banks\u2019 AI Decision Models", "content_html": "The debate over artificial intelligence policy has entered a new phase, as Washington moves toward a national framework that seeks to unify a fragmented regulatory landscape and establish clearer expectations for how the technology is governed across industries, including banking.
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\r\n\r\n\r\nThe post Proposed National AI Framework Would Test Banks\u2019 AI Decision Models appeared first on PYMNTS.com.
\n", "content_text": "The debate over artificial intelligence policy has entered a new phase, as Washington moves toward a national framework that seeks to unify a fragmented regulatory landscape and establish clearer expectations for how the technology is governed across industries, including banking.\r\n\t\r\n\t\t\r\n\t\r\n\r\n\r\n\t\nFor banks, the timing is not incidental. The industry has already embedded AI into core operations, a process that has been in the works for years. PYMNTS Intelligence data from 2024 shows that nearly three-quarters of finance leaders reported their departments were using AI, with applications spanning fraud detection, risk management and automation. These are the operational systems that influence how accounts are opened, how transactions are approved and how risk is priced.\nThe White House-directed push toward a national framework signals that policymakers are unlikely to regulate AI as a stand-alone distinct category. AI is being positioned as a capability that will be absorbed into existing financial rules, rather than governed through a standalone regime. That approach carries consequences for banks.\nAI Within Existing Regulatory Boundaries\nBy extension, AI inherits the rules that already govern the activities it touches. A fraud model that declines a transaction is subject to the same expectations as any other payment decision. An onboarding model that flags a customer is bound by the same requirements that govern identity verification and fair access.\nIf a model contributes to an erroneous denial, a missed fraud event or a discriminatory outcome, the responsibility rests with the institution that deployed it. The technology becomes inseparable from the financial action it enables.\nThe 2025 State of Fraud and Financial Crime report illustrates how deeply AI is already embedded in that decision layer. Financial institutions are shifting toward intelligence-driven fraud defenses, combining machine learning and behavioral analytics to manage increasingly complex threats. At the same time, 68% of institutions have increased fraud detection spending, reflecting the central role these systems now play in operational risk management.\nFraud, Identity and the Weight of Decisions\nThe same report underscores why regulators are unlikely to treat AI outputs as abstract or experimental. Unauthorized-party fraud now accounts for 71% of incidents and losses, driven by credential theft and account takeovers. These are precisely the areas where AI is deployed to make real-time judgments about identity, authorization and intent.\nIn that context, AI-driven decisions are indistinguishable from the financial actions they trigger. When a model approves a payment or allows account access, it is participating in a regulated activity. When it fails, the consequences extend beyond losses to include reputational damage and erosion of customer trust, which half of institutions report experiencing.\nFrom Outputs to Accountability\nFor banks, AI-driven identity checks, fraud decisions and payment approvals will not be assessed as technological outputs. They will be judged as financial decisions subject to established consumer protection, anti-fraud and compliance frameworks.\nThis distinction alters how institutions must approach model development and deployment. Performance metrics such as speed and accuracy remain important. But in addition, models must be explainable, auditable and consistent with regulatory expectations that were designed for human decision-making but now apply to automated systems.\nThe shift also exposes gaps between adoption and readiness. While AI usage is widespread, the PYMNTS Intelligence 2024 data points to persistent concerns around consumer trust, cybersecurity exposure and regulatory uncertainty. Those concerns now take on added weight as policy begins to formalize expectations.\nThe Read Across for Banks\nThe next phase of competition will hinge on which institutions can demonstrate that their models produce outcomes that withstand examination by regulators, auditors and, if necessary, courts.\nThis is a different kind of arms race. It places a premium on governance and model transparency. It also requires tighter integration between risk, compliance and technology teams, as decisions once made in isolation are now subject to broader institutional accountability.\n\nFor all PYMNTS AI coverage, subscribe to the daily\u00a0AI\u00a0Newsletter.\n\n\r\n\r\nThe post Proposed National AI Framework Would Test Banks\u2019 AI Decision Models appeared first on PYMNTS.com.", "date_published": "2026-03-24T11:37:23-04:00", "date_modified": "2026-03-24T21:51:58-04:00", "authors": [ { "name": "PYMNTS", "url": "https://www.pymnts.com/author/pymnts/", "avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/679fcf5c2ed5358e99e8e23b22e3b5d761e37bdb76fa7b0e13d8ecd9ff01bf88?s=512&d=blank&r=g" } ], "author": { "name": "PYMNTS", "url": "https://www.pymnts.com/author/pymnts/", "avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/679fcf5c2ed5358e99e8e23b22e3b5d761e37bdb76fa7b0e13d8ecd9ff01bf88?s=512&d=blank&r=g" }, "image": "https://www.pymnts.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/banks-AI-decision.png", "tags": [ "AI", "AI regulation", "artificial intelligence", "B2B", "B2B Payments", "bank regulation", "banking", "Editor's Picks", "News", "PYMNTS News", "What's Hot In B2B", "artificial intelligence" ] }, { "id": "https://www.pymnts.com/?p=3583959", "url": "https://www.pymnts.com/artificial-intelligence-2/2026/ai-hallucinations-worry-users-more-than-threat-of-job-loss/", "title": "AI Hallucinations Worry Users More Than Threat of Job Loss, Anthropic Says", "content_html": "Which is scarier? The idea of artificial intelligence (AI) making a mistake, or it taking your job?
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\r\n\r\n\r\nThe post AI Hallucinations Worry Users More Than Threat of Job Loss, Anthropic Says appeared first on PYMNTS.com.
\n", "content_text": "Which is scarier? The idea of artificial intelligence (AI) making a mistake, or it taking your job?\r\n\t\r\n\t\t\r\n\t\r\n\r\n\r\n\t\nNew research by Anthropic shows that more people would say \u201cyes\u201d to the first part of that question than to the second.\nThe findings\u2014released last week and flagged in a report Sunday (March 22) by the Financial Times (FT)\u2014showed that just under 27% of respondents said they were most concerned about mistakes made by AI.\n\u201cI had to take photos to convince the AI it was wrong \u2014 it felt like talking to a person who wouldn\u2019t admit their mistake,\u201d said a user from Brazil quoted in the report.\n\u201cThe hallucinations were a disaster. I lost so many hours of work,\u201d said a German entrepreneur, one of 81,000 people interviewed for the study.\nMeanwhile, 22% said they were worried about AI\u2019s impact on jobs and the economy, while 16% mentioned \u201ccognitive atrophy\u201d or a loss of critical thinking.\n\u201cThe risk isn\u2019t losing your ability to think \u2014 it\u2019s losing your perspective: you start adopting the AI\u2019s way of structuring things without even noticing,\u201d a user from Germany said.\nDeep Ganguli, who heads Anthropic\u2019s societal impacts team and oversaw the research, told the FT the project was designed to \u201ccollect this rich human experience using Claude, so it could really inform our research agenda, change our research agenda, change the way we think about building our products, deploying our products.\u201d\nThe findings come amid a wave of AI-related job losses, with several companies pointing to the technology when announcing layoffs recently.\nBut as PYMNTS has written, although job cuts tied back to AI invariably foster fears of a larger employment crisis, current labor research indicates that the situation is more complex.\nThat report cited findings from the World Economic Forum, which argued that while automation and AI will eliminate the need for certain tasks, they will also bring about new categories of work, especially in data, AI oversight, cybersecurity and human-centric services.\nThe report stressed that this will lead to a time of transition rather than permanent contraction. Many workers\u2019 skills are expected to evolve in the next five years, which will mean retraining and adaptation.\n\u201cThe pressure is real, but it is directional. Roles centered on routine information processing are most exposed. Roles combining domain expertise, judgment and technological fluency are expanding,\u201d PYMNTS added.\nFor all PYMNTS AI coverage, subscribe to the daily AI Newsletter.\n\r\n\r\nThe post AI Hallucinations Worry Users More Than Threat of Job Loss, Anthropic Says appeared first on PYMNTS.com.", "date_published": "2026-03-23T11:29:23-04:00", "date_modified": "2026-03-23T22:31:11-04:00", "authors": [ { "name": "PYMNTS", "url": "https://www.pymnts.com/author/pymnts/", "avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/679fcf5c2ed5358e99e8e23b22e3b5d761e37bdb76fa7b0e13d8ecd9ff01bf88?s=512&d=blank&r=g" } ], "author": { "name": "PYMNTS", "url": "https://www.pymnts.com/author/pymnts/", "avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/679fcf5c2ed5358e99e8e23b22e3b5d761e37bdb76fa7b0e13d8ecd9ff01bf88?s=512&d=blank&r=g" }, "image": "https://www.pymnts.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/AI-artificial-intelligence.jpeg", "tags": [ "AI", "AI hallucinations", "Anthropic", "Editor's Picks", "News", "PYMNTS News", "What's Hot", "artificial intelligence" ] }, { "id": "https://www.pymnts.com/?p=3579614", "url": "https://www.pymnts.com/artificial-intelligence-2/2026/white-house-unveils-national-ai-policy-to-sweep-aside-state-regulations/", "title": "White House Shops National AI Policy to Override States", "content_html": "The White House unveiled a National Policy Framework for Artificial Intelligence Friday (March 20), saying that this set of legislative recommendations is designed to help American industry innovate and American people benefit from the technology.
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\r\n\r\n\r\nThe post White House Shops National AI Policy to Override States appeared first on PYMNTS.com.
\n", "content_text": "The White House unveiled a National Policy Framework for Artificial Intelligence Friday (March 20), saying that this set of legislative recommendations is designed to help American industry innovate and American people benefit from the technology.\r\n\t\r\n\t\t\r\n\t\r\n\r\n\r\n\t\nThe framework aims to provide a consistent national policy, the White House said in a Friday press release.\n\u201cImportantly, this framework can succeed only if it is applied uniformly across the United States,\u201d the White House said in the release. \u201cA patchwork of conflicting state laws would undermine American innovation and our ability to lead in the global AI race.\u201d\nThe framework\u2019s objectives include protecting children and empowering parents by providing account controls, safeguarding and strengthening communities by making it easier to secure permits for on-site power generation at data centers, and supporting creators by respecting intellectual property rights while also allowing fair use by AI.\nThe framework also calls for protecting free speech by preventing AI systems from being used to silence political expression, enabling American dominance in AI by removing barriers to innovation, and developing an AI-ready workforce by expanding workforce development and skills training programs.\n\u201cThe Administration looks forward to working with Congress in the coming months to turn this framework into legislation that the President can sign,\u201d the White House said in the release.\nPresident Donald Trump signed an executive order in December 2025 that directed the federal government to establish a new national approach to AI and to push back against state-by-state AI rules the administration said are slowing AI innovation.\nIt was reported Tuesday (March 17) that AI companies and investors have clamored for Congress to enact a single, federal standard that would override the growing patchwork of often conflicting state AI regulations.\nCurrently, around 20 states have passed comprehensive privacy laws covering AI and several others have passed more limited measures.\nIt was reported in February that Utah had become the latest flashpoint between states and the White House over AI regulations. As a bill regulating AI was being considered by the state\u2019s legislature, the White House Office of Intergovernmental Affairs sent a letter to a state senator saying that the bill is \u201cunfixable\u201d and \u201cgoes against the Administration\u2019s AI Agenda.\u201d\n\nFor all PYMNTS AI coverage, subscribe to the daily\u00a0AI\u00a0Newsletter.\n\n\r\n\r\nThe post White House Shops National AI Policy to Override States appeared first on PYMNTS.com.", "date_published": "2026-03-20T11:09:45-04:00", "date_modified": "2026-03-22T21:48:41-04:00", "authors": [ { "name": "PYMNTS", "url": "https://www.pymnts.com/author/pymnts/", "avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/679fcf5c2ed5358e99e8e23b22e3b5d761e37bdb76fa7b0e13d8ecd9ff01bf88?s=512&d=blank&r=g" } ], "author": { "name": "PYMNTS", "url": "https://www.pymnts.com/author/pymnts/", "avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/679fcf5c2ed5358e99e8e23b22e3b5d761e37bdb76fa7b0e13d8ecd9ff01bf88?s=512&d=blank&r=g" }, "image": "https://www.pymnts.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/white-house-1.jpg", "tags": [ "AI", "AI regulation", "Editor's Picks", "News", "PYMNTS News", "regulations", "What's Hot", "white house", "artificial intelligence" ] }, { "id": "https://www.pymnts.com/?p=3576323", "url": "https://www.pymnts.com/news/cross-border-commerce/cross-border-payments/2026/global-payments-golden-age-has-nothing-to-do-with-crypto/", "title": "Banks Make Their Move in Cross-Border Payments", "content_html": "Cost-effective, streamlined and data-rich cross-border payments have long been the holy grail of global commerce.
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\r\n\r\n\r\nThe post Banks Make Their Move in Cross-Border Payments appeared first on PYMNTS.com.
\n", "content_text": "Cost-effective, streamlined and data-rich cross-border payments have long been the holy grail of global commerce.\r\n\t\r\n\t\t\r\n\t\r\n\r\n\r\n\t\nStablecoins, after all, have been able to basically make their name on just their promise alone to innovate and disrupt the cross-border settlement space. As recently as Tuesday (March 17), PayPal expanded the availability of its dollar-backed stablecoin\u00a0PayPal USD\u00a0(PYUSD) and now offers it in 70 markets worldwide.\nBut stablecoin flows represent an infinitesimally small portion of cross-border payment volume. Payments originating from Latin America and Africa, two supposed digital asset hot spots, each account for less than $1 billion. Stablecoin payment activity today is driven almost entirely by payments sent from Singapore, Hong Kong and Japan, per McKinsey.\nBeneath the headline crypto noise, however, a more powerful, real-world transformation has been unfolding. Traditional payment rails, long criticized for being slow, opaque and expensive, are undergoing a structural upgrade.\nThree main advances are driving change: real-time rails are expanding globally, FX costs are shrinking and APIs are turning payments into software and streamlining local and multicurrency collections.\nAnd unlike many crypto-native experiments, these changes are already delivering measurable impact at scale. The news Wednesday (March 18) that J.P. Morgan Payments\u00a0and\u00a0Mastercard have launched a new virtual card in Europe, for example, is likely to drive far greater actual cross-border volume than any stablecoin expansion could.\nRead more: Trade Disruptions Tie Up Cash and Test CFO Playbooks\u00a0\nWhy Stablecoins Aren\u2019t the Main Story\nThe broader story is that many of the benefits associated with stablecoins, such as speed, lower costs and flexibility, are now being delivered within the existing financial system. They are being delivered in a way that is integrated with regulatory frameworks, banking relationships and enterprise workflows.\nIn other words, the transformation of cross-border payments is not waiting for a new system to replace the old one. It is happening within the system itself.\nWhile cross-border payments have\u00a0been constrained by the limitations of domestic systems, that divide is now closing. Real-time payment networks are proliferating rapidly across major economies, from Europe to Southeast Asia to Latin America.\nMore importantly, interoperability between these systems is improving. Bilateral and multilateral linkages are enabling funds to move directly between countries without defaulting to legacy correspondent banking chains.\nAnd if speed has been the most visible pain point in cross-border payments, cost has been the most persistent. Foreign exchange spreads, intermediary fees and hidden markups have long made international transactions expensive and unpredictable.\nBut advances in treasury technology are enabling businesses to manage currency exposure more proactively, reducing the need for costly last-minute conversions. At the same time, a combination of increased competition, better pricing data and more efficient liquidity management is driving FX costs downward.\nPerhaps most importantly, payment providers are rethinking how FX is integrated into the transaction flow. Instead of treating currency conversion as a separate, opaque step, it is increasingly embedded into the payment process itself, with real-time pricing and clear disclosures.\nSee also:\u00a0B2B\u2019s Biggest Innovation Isn\u2019t Technology. It\u2019s the Buying Experience\u00a0\nPayments Are Becoming Software\nThe third, and perhaps most transformative driver of change, is the rise of API-driven payment infrastructure. In the past, integrating with cross-border payment systems required significant manual effort, custom integrations and ongoing operational overhead. Payments were something businesses executed, not something they could easily embed into their products or workflows.\nWith APIs, however, instead of building separate processes for each market, companies can create unified payment experiences that adapt dynamically to local requirements. Collecting funds in multiple currencies, reconciling transactions and routing payments through the most efficient corridors can all be automated.\n\u201cThere are\u00a0expectations both on buyer sides and supplier sides for things to become a little bit more digital and automated,\u201d\u00a0Rene Stynen, senior vice president, EMEA, B2B Payments at\u00a0Boost Payment Solutions, told PYMNTS in an interview this month.\n\u201cEmbedded payments, where the payment becomes invisible in the procure-to-pay process, is what everyone wants,\u201d Stynen added. \u201cYou don\u2019t want the payment as a separate step.\u201d\nA company can, for example, accept payments in local currencies from customers around the world, hold those funds in multi-currency accounts, and disburse them to suppliers or partners without unnecessary conversions. The result is a more efficient flow of funds and a better experience for all parties involved.\nFor global businesses, this shift opens up new possibilities. Entering new markets becomes less about navigating complex payment infrastructures and more about executing a coherent go-to-market strategy. Managing suppliers and partners across borders becomes more predictable and less resource-intensive. And delivering a consistent customer experience becomes achievable, even in highly fragmented markets.\nFor all PYMNTS B2B coverage, subscribe to the daily\u00a0B2B Newsletter.\n\r\n\r\nThe post Banks Make Their Move in Cross-Border Payments appeared first on PYMNTS.com.", "date_published": "2026-03-19T11:18:08-04:00", "date_modified": "2026-03-19T22:31:49-04:00", "authors": [ { "name": "PYMNTS", "url": "https://www.pymnts.com/author/pymnts/", "avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/679fcf5c2ed5358e99e8e23b22e3b5d761e37bdb76fa7b0e13d8ecd9ff01bf88?s=512&d=blank&r=g" } ], "author": { "name": "PYMNTS", "url": "https://www.pymnts.com/author/pymnts/", "avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/679fcf5c2ed5358e99e8e23b22e3b5d761e37bdb76fa7b0e13d8ecd9ff01bf88?s=512&d=blank&r=g" }, "image": "https://www.pymnts.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/cross-border-payment-goals.png", "tags": [ "B2B", "B2B Payments", "Cross-border Payments", "Editor's Picks", "Featured News", "News", "PYMNTS News", "real time payments", "stablecoins" ] }, { "id": "https://www.pymnts.com/?p=3561194", "url": "https://www.pymnts.com/economy/2026/services-carry-the-economy-while-shoppers-skip-big-purchases/", "title": "Services Carry the Economy While Shoppers Skip Big Purchases", "content_html": "U.S. consumers are still spending, but their paychecks are having a hard time keeping up.
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\r\n\r\n\r\nThe post Services Carry the Economy While Shoppers Skip Big Purchases appeared first on PYMNTS.com.
\n", "content_text": "U.S. consumers are still spending, but their paychecks are having a hard time keeping up.\r\n\t\r\n\t\t\r\n\t\r\n\r\n\r\n\t\nThe latest Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) data, released Friday (March 13), shows that income growth picked up in January and inflation remained relatively contained. Spending continues to outpace income in real terms, while overall economic growth slowed sharply at the end of 2025. The result is an economy that is expanding, but with consumers carrying much of the momentum while managing rising costs and limited financial buffers.\nJanuary\u2019s personal consumption expenditures (PCE) data shows a consumer economy still moving forward, but with signs of strain beneath the surface.\nPersonal income rose 0.4% for the month, continuing a steady trend after increases of 0.3% in December and 0.4% in November. Compensation growth accelerated to 0.5%, while asset income, particularly dividends, jumped 1.2%. Disposable income rose faster, climbing 0.9%, largely because personal taxes dropped 3.2%, a seasonal shift often tied to withholding changes.\nConsumers spent that additional income quickly. Personal consumption expenditures rose 0.4% for the month, matching December\u2019s increase. The composition of that spending reveals a familiar pattern in the post-pandemic economy: services continue to dominate, especially necessities like housing and healthcare. Spending on services rose 0.7% in January, while goods spending fell 0.4%. Durable goods purchases dropped 0.7%, suggesting households are pulling back on larger purchases.\nInflation remained moderate but persistent. The PCE price index increased 0.3% for the month and 2.8% year over year, while core PCE rose 3.1%. Services prices climbed 3.5% annually, outpacing goods prices, which increased 1.3%.\nWhen adjusted for inflation, the imbalance becomes clearer. Real disposable income is up 1.8% year over year, while real consumer spending is up 2.4%. In other words, consumers are still spending faster than their incomes are growing.\nAt the broader economic level, growth slowed sharply. Friday\u2019s data showed that GDP increased at an annualized rate of just 0.7% in the fourth quarter of 2025, well below the 4.4% pace recorded in the third quarter. Declines in government spending and exports drove much of the slowdown, while consumer spending and private investment continued to support the expansion.\nThe Affordability Gap Behind the Numbers\nThese data points highlight the widening gap between economic resilience and financial comfort.\nThe recently released PYMNTS Consumer Expectations Index (PCEI), which measures not just consumer sentiment but also their perceived ability to spend, found that how Americans feel has a lot to do with their financial lifestyle. Households not living paycheck to paycheck maintain relatively positive feelings, while consumers struggling to pay bills remain deeply negative about their financial position.\nAt the same time, Americans broadly report feeling confident about their ability to manage debt but less certain that their overall financial position is improving. That combination supports steady spending in the near term but leaves households with less cushion if conditions worsen.\nLooking at affordability specifically can help explain why the macro data can look healthy while consumer sentiment remains uneasy. Rising prices for everyday necessities like groceries, housing, insurance and transportation have fundamentally changed how households think about spending decisions. Affordability conversations used to revolve around discretionary choices such as vacations or large purchases. Today, they increasingly center on managing cash flow and covering essentials.\nThe January income and spending data reinforces that reality. Paychecks are growing and inflation has cooled from its peaks, yet spending continues to run ahead of income in real terms. For businesses watching consumer demand, that dynamic suggests the same pattern PYMNTS research has been tracking for months: resilient spending, but with increasingly thin financial margins supporting it.\n\r\n\r\nThe post Services Carry the Economy While Shoppers Skip Big Purchases appeared first on PYMNTS.com.", "date_published": "2026-03-13T14:05:52-04:00", "date_modified": "2026-03-15T18:42:19-04:00", "authors": [ { "name": "PYMNTS", "url": "https://www.pymnts.com/author/pymnts/", "avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/679fcf5c2ed5358e99e8e23b22e3b5d761e37bdb76fa7b0e13d8ecd9ff01bf88?s=512&d=blank&r=g" } ], "author": { "name": "PYMNTS", "url": "https://www.pymnts.com/author/pymnts/", "avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/679fcf5c2ed5358e99e8e23b22e3b5d761e37bdb76fa7b0e13d8ecd9ff01bf88?s=512&d=blank&r=g" }, "image": "https://www.pymnts.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/unsure-financial-footing-1.jpg", "tags": [ "BEA", "Consumer Spending", "Editor's Picks", "Featured News", "inflation", "News", "Payments Intelligence", "PYMNTS Intelligence", "PYMNTS News", "Economy" ] }, { "id": "https://www.pymnts.com/?p=3559555", "url": "https://www.pymnts.com/economy/2026/nyc-lawmakers-target-nations-highest-minimum-wage-as-restaurants-warn-of-job-cuts/", "title": "NYC Lawmakers Target Nation\u2019s Highest Minimum Wage as Restaurants Warn of Job Cuts", "content_html": "A bill introduced in the New York City Council would make the city\u2019s minimum wage the highest in the country, though it would still be below what some consider to be a living wage, The Wall Street Journal reported Thursday (March 12).
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\r\n\r\n\r\nThe post NYC Lawmakers Target Nation\u2019s Highest Minimum Wage as Restaurants Warn of Job Cuts appeared first on PYMNTS.com.
\n", "content_text": "A bill introduced in the New York City Council would make the city\u2019s minimum wage the highest in the country, though it would still be below what some consider to be a living wage, The Wall Street Journal reported Thursday (March 12).\r\n\t\r\n\t\t\r\n\t\r\n\r\n\r\n\t\nThe bill, which was introduced Tuesday (March 10), would set the hourly minimum wage for employers with more than 500 employees at $30 by 2030 and for those with fewer than 500 employees at $29 by 2031, according to the website of the New York City Council.\nNew York City\u2019s minimum wage is currently $17 per hour, according to the WSJ report.\nOther cities whose minimum wages are among the country\u2019s highest include Seattle, at $21.30 per hour, and Los Angeles, whose minimum wage for hotel and airport workers will rise from $20.32 to $30 by 2028, the report said.\nIf the New York City bill becomes law, the minimum wage would still fall short of what the Economic Policy Institute calculates to be a living wage in the city. While the organization says a single person needs an annual income of $83,262 for a living wage in the New York metro area, the bill\u2019s minimum wage would provide $62,400, per the report.\nOne business owner interviewed by the WSJ said a wage increase would make it impossible for people to open new restaurants. Another, who owns five restaurants and a cocktail lounge, said he would have to cut a dozen jobs and require customers to place orders on their phones. A third business owner said the higher minimum wage would be fair and would help employers retain workers.\nNew York State Restaurant Association President Melissa Fleischut said in the article: \u201cWe feel like we\u2019re at a tipping point with consumers. There\u2019s only so much you can charge for a slice of pizza or a cheeseburger.\u201d\nCity Council Member Carmen N. De La Rosa said in a post on X that the bill would ensure \u201cthe pockets of NYC\u2019s workforce match the reality of today\u2019s economy and rate of inflation.\u201d\nA separate New York City law requiring companies to offer grocery delivery workers the same minimum pay that restaurant delivery workers are eligible for, went into effect in January.\n\r\n\r\nThe post NYC Lawmakers Target Nation\u2019s Highest Minimum Wage as Restaurants Warn of Job Cuts appeared first on PYMNTS.com.", "date_published": "2026-03-13T10:30:50-04:00", "date_modified": "2026-03-13T12:51:43-04:00", "authors": [ { "name": "PYMNTS", "url": "https://www.pymnts.com/author/pymnts/", "avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/679fcf5c2ed5358e99e8e23b22e3b5d761e37bdb76fa7b0e13d8ecd9ff01bf88?s=512&d=blank&r=g" } ], "author": { "name": "PYMNTS", "url": "https://www.pymnts.com/author/pymnts/", "avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/679fcf5c2ed5358e99e8e23b22e3b5d761e37bdb76fa7b0e13d8ecd9ff01bf88?s=512&d=blank&r=g" }, "image": "https://www.pymnts.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/NYC-minimum-wage.png", "tags": [ "Editor's Picks", "jobs", "Legislation", "minimum wage", "News", "PYMNTS News", "Restaurants", "wages", "What's Hot", "Economy" ] }, { "id": "https://www.pymnts.com/?p=3553620", "url": "https://www.pymnts.com/bank-regulation/2026/the-crypto-charter-scorecard-mapping-bankings-new-infrastructure-race/", "title": "The New FinTech Scorecard Starts With a Bank Charter", "content_html": "Digital assets are reshaping U.S. financial services, and their impact can be traced by the wake of new banking charter applications.
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The post The New FinTech Scorecard Starts With a Bank Charter appeared first on PYMNTS.com.
\n", "content_text": "Digital assets are reshaping U.S. financial services, and their impact can be traced by the wake of new banking charter applications.\r\n\t\r\n\t\t\r\n\t\r\n\r\n\r\n\t\nThe U.S. Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) is receiving so many applications for digital asset-focused national trust charters that a lobbying group for the traditional financial sector, the Bank Policy Institute\u00a0(BPI), is considering suing the banking regulator over its decisions to approve so many crypto, payment and FinTech companies for them.\nMany crypto and crypto-interested financial firms are pursuing\u00a0national trust bank charters\u00a0because they allow custody and tokenization without the heavy regulatory burden of deposit-taking banks.\nDuring 2025 alone, the OCC received 14\u00a0de novo charter applications, a number nearly equaling the total applications received by the agency in the previous four years combined.\nNow, barely 2\u00bd months into 2026, the OCC has already approved four new applications and received north of seven.\nDigital lender\u00a0Upstart\u00a0on Tuesday (March 10) became the latest U.S. FinTech seeking a banking charter, applying to the OCC and the\u00a0Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation\u00a0(FDIC) to establish an insured national bank.\nAnd while conditional approvals and actual operational status are two very different things, the direction of travel across banking implies that regulated infrastructure providers, not consumer interfaces, could be the most valuable layer of finance.\nSee also: Bank Charters Are Reshaping Who Can Compete for Consumer Deposits\u00a0\nMaking Sense of Banking Charters\nA predominant feature of the current charter wave is that many applicants are not seeking to become traditional banks. Instead, they are pursuing licenses that allow them to perform specific financial functions.\nThe pace of activity may be easiest to understand when visually mapped across approvals and pending applications.\n \n\nAs highlighted in the chart, despite the rush of approvals and applications, conditional approval does not mean a bank is operational. To launch, firms must meet additional regulatory requirements, including capital thresholds, governance structures, and operational readiness standards.\nProtego\u2019s own case highlights how difficult that transition can be. The company initially received conditional OCC approval in 2021 but failed to meet the required conditions before the approval expired. It was conditionally approved by the Treasury agency for a second time in February.\nA bank charter \u201cis not a trophy, and it certainly isn\u2019t a product label, but it\u2019s a public trust,\u201d\u00a0Rodney E. Hood, former acting comptroller of the currency, said in an interview with Competition Policy International, a PYMNTS company, in January.\n\u201cA federal charter should never be construed as an\u00a0end run around supervision, and it should certainly never be a pathway to scale without accountability,\u201d Hood added.\nSee also: Can Crypto\u2019s Open Network Dreams Survive Going Corporate?\u00a0\nThe FinTech Charter Strategy\nBehind the charter race could lie a shift in how financial value is being created.\nHistorically, consumer banking has been dominated by institutions controlling deposits and lending. But digital assets are creating new layers of financial infrastructure across custody, settlement networks, tokenized securities, and blockchain-based payment rails. The companies controlling these layers may end up capturing the most value.\nResearch by PYMNTS Intelligence has found that 62% of Generation Z consumers would consider\u00a0using a neobank as their primary bank account provider, \u201ca striking\u00a0level of openness\u00a0that outpaces all other generations,\u201d as covered here in October.\nThe implications, according to a\u00a0paper\u00a0published last month by economists\u00a0Michael Junho Lee\u00a0and\u00a0Donny Tou\u00a0at the\u00a0Federal Reserve Bank of New York, could be systemic. The New York Fed report found that stablecoins\u00a0do more than compete with bank deposits. They alter the liquidity demands placed on the banks that serve them. In doing so, they encourage a more reserve-heavy and potentially less loan-intensive banking model.\nThis model resembles what economists often call a \u201cnarrow bank.\u201d Such institutions focus on safeguarding assets and facilitating payments while maintaining high levels of liquidity and minimal credit risk. In contrast, conventional commercial banks generate revenue primarily by transforming deposits into loans.\nRegulation, as always, will have a key role to play in the future of the banking ecosystem. The\u00a0PYMNTS Intelligence\u00a0and\u00a0Citi\u00a0report \u201cChain Reaction: Regulatory Clarity as the Catalyst for Blockchain Adoption\u201d found that blockchain\u2019s next leap will be shaped by regulation. While evolving guidance is starting to create the foundations for safe, scalable blockchain adoption, \u201cimplementation challenges \u2026 continue to complicate progress.\u201d\n\r\n\r\nThe post The New FinTech Scorecard Starts With a Bank Charter appeared first on PYMNTS.com.", "date_published": "2026-03-11T16:02:44-04:00", "date_modified": "2026-03-12T12:29:27-04:00", "authors": [ { "name": "PYMNTS", "url": "https://www.pymnts.com/author/pymnts/", "avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/679fcf5c2ed5358e99e8e23b22e3b5d761e37bdb76fa7b0e13d8ecd9ff01bf88?s=512&d=blank&r=g" } ], "author": { "name": "PYMNTS", "url": "https://www.pymnts.com/author/pymnts/", "avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/679fcf5c2ed5358e99e8e23b22e3b5d761e37bdb76fa7b0e13d8ecd9ff01bf88?s=512&d=blank&r=g" }, "image": "https://www.pymnts.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/crypto-bank-charters-1.jpg", "tags": [ "banking", "Cryptocurrency", "Editor's Picks", "Featured News", "FinTechs", "national trust charter", "News", "OC&C", "PYMNTS News", "Bank Regulation" ] }, { "id": "https://www.pymnts.com/?p=3552535", "url": "https://www.pymnts.com/consumer-finance/2026/inflation-holds-steady-as-consumers-use-installments-for-everyday-spending/", "title": "Inflation Cooled but Essentials Tightened Their Grip", "content_html": "Inflation in the United States appears contained for the moment, yet the latest reading suggests consumers may be navigating a calm that could prove temporary.
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\r\n\r\n\r\nThe post Inflation Cooled but Essentials Tightened Their Grip appeared first on PYMNTS.com.
\n", "content_text": "Inflation in the United States appears contained for the moment, yet the latest reading suggests consumers may be navigating a calm that could prove temporary.\r\n\t\r\n\t\t\r\n\t\r\n\r\n\r\n\t\nThe Consumer Price Index rose 2.4% year over year in February, according to data released on Wednesday (March 11) and increased 0.3% month over month on a seasonally adjusted basis, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.\nThat annual pace matches the reading recorded in January, indicating that broad price pressures remain relatively stable across the economy.\n\n \nThe data arrives before what economists increasingly view as a possible inflationary jolt tied to geopolitical tensions and energy markets. Energy prices rose 0.6% in February and Brent crude prices were roughly 33% higher than a month earlier, a surge that could ripple through transportation, logistics and consumer prices if sustained.\nFor now, however, the inflation picture remains uneven. While headline inflation sits near the Federal Reserve\u2019s long-run target, several everyday spending categories continue to climb at a faster rate.\nServices and Essentials Continue to Apply Pressure\nA closer look at the CPI components reveals that certain segments still exceed the overall index. Shelter costs rose 3% over the past year and food prices increased 3.1%. Within food spending, meals away from home climbed 3.9% during the same period, while food at home rose 2.4%.\nService categories also continue to account for a large portion of inflationary momentum. Services excluding energy increased 2.9% year over year, and medical care services rose 4.1% over the same period.\nThese categories matter because they dominate household budgets. Housing, groceries and healthcare represent recurring expenses that are difficult to postpone or substitute, which means even modest price changes affect household finances.\nConsumers have responded to those pressures with adjustments that extend beyond simply buying less.\nResearch from PYMNTS Intelligence indicates that financial strain increasingly shapes how households shop and pay. Many consumers facing tighter budgets are shifting toward online retail and digital payment methods that offer greater visibility into spending or access to flexible financing.\nThe findings suggest that financial pressure does not necessarily suppress spending outright. Instead, it changes how consumers structure purchases and manage payments.\nFood Costs and Financial Stress Shape Payment Choices\nFood spending illustrates this shift particularly clearly. Grocery purchases often serve as a barometer for inflation, yet purchasing behavior suggests that households are adapting rather than withdrawing.\nConsumers experiencing financial stress often spend more per grocery transaction than those with lower financial strain. In one example cited in PYMNTS Intelligence research, high-stress consumers spent an average of $109 on their most recent grocery purchase compared with $95 among low-stress consumers.\nThis pattern may reflect consolidation of purchases or efforts to stretch trips to the store. It also suggests that households increasingly rely on financial tools that allow them to smooth spending across pay cycles.\nDigital wallets and installment features play a growing role in that process. Among consumers experiencing financial pressure, the share using digital wallets for retail transactions rose notably during 2025, and wallet usage is often linked to access to buy now, pay later options.\nKaren Webster, CEO of PYMNTS, noted on Wednesday that consumers are not primarily focused on maximizing rewards or loyalty programs. Instead, they are trying to manage cash flow and maintain flexibility in the face of unpredictable expenses.\n\u201cConsumers are constantly managing the gap between paychecks, sometimes consciously, often on autopilot,\u201d Webster wrote, noting that credit cards, installments and BNPL serve as tools for navigating that gap rather than competing products in the consumer\u2019s mind.\nHer observation reflects a broader shift in consumer finance behavior. Households increasingly view payment methods as interchangeable mechanisms for balancing income timing and expenses.\nInstallments Likely to Remain Central as Inflation Evolves\nIf energy markets push inflation higher in coming months, those flexible payment tools may become even more central to consumer spending behavior.\nMany households already operate under tight financial constraints. Research shows that roughly two in three Americans live paycheck to paycheck, even if they do not always report outright shortfalls in meeting expenses.\nThat reality means that even moderate price increases can influence how purchases are financed. Installments and BNPL plans allow consumers to convert immediate expenses into predictable payments, which can help preserve liquidity during periods of uncertainty.\nIf inflation accelerates again due to higher energy prices or geopolitical disruptions, the trend toward installment-based spending is unlikely to reverse. Instead, consumers will continue doing what they have quietly done for years: assembling a stack of financial tools that allows them to manage cash flow one purchase at a time.\n\r\n\r\nThe post Inflation Cooled but Essentials Tightened Their Grip appeared first on PYMNTS.com.", "date_published": "2026-03-11T11:52:16-04:00", "date_modified": "2026-03-11T21:39:09-04:00", "authors": [ { "name": "PYMNTS", "url": "https://www.pymnts.com/author/pymnts/", "avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/679fcf5c2ed5358e99e8e23b22e3b5d761e37bdb76fa7b0e13d8ecd9ff01bf88?s=512&d=blank&r=g" } ], "author": { "name": "PYMNTS", "url": "https://www.pymnts.com/author/pymnts/", "avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/679fcf5c2ed5358e99e8e23b22e3b5d761e37bdb76fa7b0e13d8ecd9ff01bf88?s=512&d=blank&r=g" }, "image": "https://www.pymnts.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/inflation-consumer-spending-economy.jpeg", "tags": [ "consumer price index", "Consumer Spending", "economy", "Editor's Picks", "Featured News", "inflation", "installment payments", "News", "PYMNTS News", "Consumer Finance" ] } ] }