FIVE KEY TRENDS DRIVING CHANGE IN PAYMENTS
From BNPL to cryptocurrency , the world of payments is changing – and innovation is at the heart of it
WRITTEN BY : JOANNA ENGLAND
It ’ s no secret that fintech is transforming the global financial industry . As incumbent banks battle to keep up with their lightweight , digitised younger competitors and financial operatives jostle to provide increasingly frictionless services , the payments space is also undergoing changes of its own – and they are no less dramatic .
Innovations in digital currencies , blockchain technology and AML regulations have caused a number of disruptive changes to transform the payments space . Security has loomed large , too , as cybercrime has skyrocketed over the past two years . We take a look at five defining trends that are reshaping payments as we know them .
66 June 2022
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1 . CRYPTOCURRENCY IS
GOING MAINSTREAM The news that El Salvador was introducing Bitcoin as a mainstream currency sent shockwaves through the financial markets . But , just under a year later , time has moved swiftly forward , with digital currencies at the forefront of most payment companies ’ agendas . Over the past year , there has been a marked increase in M7A in relation to crypto .
For example , PayPal acquired Curv , Nuvei acquired Simplex as well as new partnerships , cryptocurrency feature launches , and significant funding rounds . Take NYDIG and its impressive funding drive in December 2021 : It raised $ 1bn – officially a megaround .