Snippings

The dynamics of cash, then, seem paradoxical. The use of cash continues to fall whereas the amount of cash out there continues to go up. So where is all that cash? Well, I found some of them: check out the pictures here of the €500,000 cash mountain that police found in a bust of gang that had made £165m by ferrying drugs around the UK. At one point (in 2020) they were bringing in £400,000 every single day.

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An AI bot could act as your intern.
One reason chatbots like the one Holding used might not take over tons of jobs right away is there are limits to what AI can do — for now. Generative AI tools often still require oversight, much like an inexperienced worker might.

From: How AI Is Tackling Jobs Humans Don’t Have Time for.

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In his 2023 study published in the Journal of the Association for Consumer Research, Bechler found that consumers “pay with card to remember and cash to forget” because the latter method won’t leave a paper trail of their purchases.

From: Why Does the US Continue to Print Money When Cash Is No Longer King?.

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Technology provider FIS is now certified to send and receive payments on the FedNow payments rail as demand for the rail grows.  FIS has 215 clients in contract or in the pipeline for the Federal Reserve’s payments rail, Chief Executive Stephanie Ferris said during the company’s fourth-quarter earnings call today.

From: FIS certified to send, receive payments on FedNow | Bank Automation News.

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In acquiring Discover, Capital One is getting (at least) four things: Discover’s credit card network, its debit card network, PULSE, a top ten credit card issuer, and the rest of Discover’s banking business: deposits, checking accounts, mortgages, personal loans, and so on.

From: Is the Capital One/Discover Deal Good or Bad For “Competition”? Yes..

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According to identity verification platform IDnow, those aged between 18 and 24 are at the most risk, with a massive 48 per cent of young people having shared their ID documents via risky channels such as email, social media or messaging apps.

From: Scammers now use AI and deepfakes to forge documents and steal money | This is Money.

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The draft guidance issued by Ofcom for pornography providers specifies that digital identity wallets, open banking, photo-ID matching, age estimation based on face biometrics, mobile operator checks and credit cards can all be sources of “highly effective” age assurance, if implemented properly. Methods like self-attestation, debit and other cards and general contractual obligations will not be accepted.

From: The UK’s Online Safety Act is live; now for the hard part | Biometric Update.

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Moreover, Fnality raised USD 95 million in its second fundraising round in November 2023, with Goldman Sachs and BNP Paribas leading the round. Other participants included Depository Trust and Clearing Corporation (DTCC), Euroclear, and WisdomTree. On top of that, according to Fnality, the company’s backers are either based in the US or have significant operations there, making it a natural target for expansion. In addition, all the fintech shareholders expressed their intention to use Fnality’s blockchain-based system for dollar transactions as well.

From: Fnality to expand in the US – ThePaypers.

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In a recent interview, Fnality’s officials revealed that, among all the international markets, the company is now leaning towards the US first, making it a priority. Currently, the fintech is in the process of discussing its application with the Federal Reserve. Moreover, the company is set to expand its blockchain-based payment system by adding the USD as a currency.

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93% of in-store card payments up to £100 were made with contactless in 2023

From: How 93.4% of all shop transactions are now contactless | This is Money.

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Data Bridge Research predict[1] instant payments will account for one in three of all consumer transactions globally by 2029

From: One in three transactions will be instant payments by 2029.

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