IPA Payments Pod

It's a busy summer in Washington DC, and the payments industry is getting its fair share of attention. In our latest episode, we talk about the attention that the industry is getting from all three branches of the government. Whether its regulatory scrutiny, new legislation, or lawsuits, payments companies have a lot to pay attention to. In this episode, the IPA's CEO, Brian Tate, and Chris Stromberg, our director of government relations, bring some order to the chaos.

The COVID pandemic changed everyone's lives, so it is no surprise that it changed how people paid for goods and services. In this episode, we delve into what those changes were and how long they will last with Claire Green, payments risk expert at the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta, and Joanna Stavins, senior economist and policy advisor at the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston.

We discuss how the use of payment types shifted across different demographics and why we can't use our own behavior as guide to the bigger picture.

Below is a list of recent research on consumer behavior that is worth reading whether you are designing financial products or just want to see how you compare with the rest of the country.

Survey of Household Economics and Decisionmaking

2021, released May 23, 2021

https://www.federalreserve.gov/consumerscommunities/shed.htm

Cash Product Office, FRB San Francisco

2022 Findings from the Diary of Consumer Payment Choice

2021, released May 5, 2021

https://www.frbsf.org/cash/publications/fed-notes/2022/may/2022-findings-from-the-diary-of-consumer-payment-choice/

Payments Evolution from Paper to Electronic Payments by Merchant Type

By Ruth Cohen, Oz Shy, and Joanna Stavins

https://www.bostonfed.org/publications/research-department-working-paper/2022/payments-evolution-from-paper-to-electronic-payments-by-merchant-type.aspx

posted May 2021

Has Covid changed consumer payment behavior?

By Claire Greene, Ellen Merry, and Joanna Stavins

https://www.bostonfed.org/publications/research-department-working-paper/2021/has-covid-changed-consumer-payment-behavior.aspx

All consumer survey data and reports available for download at Atlantafed.org (includes questionnaires and data codebooks)

https://www.atlantafed.org/banking-and-payments/consumer-payments.aspx

With all the news that comes out of Washington DC, it is easy to see why payments-related items might not be at the top of everyone's minds. Nonetheless, a number of recent proposals, hearings, and releases show that the industry needs to be paying attention to what is going on beyond the headlines.

In this episode we take a deep dive into some of these items with Brian Tate, the CEO of the Innovation Payments Association, and Brian Axell, of Axell Law, who has worked on compliance with Fintechs, issuing banks, and a variety of companies across the value chain.

We look at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's recent Request for Information on Fees, and their assertion of power to regulate Fintechs. We get into the Biden Administrations proposal on tax reporting for Earn Wage Access, and we even dip our toes back into the Interchange waters.

To read Brian Axell's blog on the EWA tax proposal, visit: Axell Law LLC | Biden Budget Plan Would Impose Earned Wage Access Tax Withholding Mandates on Employers

Starting to save for college early pays off down the road, so the City of San Francisco's Office of Financial Empowerment has created the Kindergarten to College program.

The program opens a savings account for every student in the city school district. Now, the program has published an RFP to evaluate possible financial services partners to hold the accounts.

In this episode, we talk with Nicole Agbayani, the director of the Office of Financial Empowerment, and Mohan Kanungo, the program manager of Kindergarten to College. We cover what the program does, how it works, and what the city is looking for in a financial services partner.

For more details on how to bid on the business, including a presentation and informational video, visit: Request for Proposals | Treasurer & Tax Collector (sftreasurer.org)

If you want to keep up with the changes in the payments industry, then make plans to join us in Washington DC for the Innovative Payments Conference from April 12-14. See the agenda and register here: IPC 2022 - Innovative Payments Association (ipa.org).

First, the Biden Administration has launched a whole of government effort to look at the role of cryptocurrencies in the United States with an executive order.

Second, a lawsuit by retailers to lower interchange was dismissed by the courts.

Finally, the nomination of Sarah Bloom Raskin to the Federal Reserve was publicly opposed by Senator Joe Manchin of West Virginia.

We delve into the details of these three events and what they might mean for the payments industry as a whole.

If you want to keep up with the changes in the payments industry, then make plans to join us in Washington DC for the Innovative Payments Conference from April 12-14. See the agenda and register here: IPC 2022 - Innovative Payments Association (ipa.org).

You can learn more about Spruce at: Mobile Banking for People Who Want to Be Good with Money | Spruce (sprucemoney.com)

As a reminder, the CFPB is appealing Judge Richard Leon's opinion in PayPal v. CFPB issued on December 31, 2020. Please note that in its Opening Brief filed in August, the CFPB makes it clear that the "sole question presented by the decision below (in U.S. District Court by Judge Richard Leon) is whether the Bureau has statutory authority to adopt the short-form disclosure requirements."

In this episode, we talk with Brian Tate, the IPA's CEO, and Chris Stromberg, our head of government relations, about the possible outcomes for the case and what the suit might mean in the context of some of the Bureau's other recent actions.

Once you are done listening, you can find the recording of the oral arguments in the case here: https://www.cadc.uscourts.gov/recordings/recordings2021.nsf/B648C0D7905E3B97852587E50059E02D/$file/21-5057.mp3

In this episode, we talk with Paul Swinton, B4B’s global CEO, and Kieran Draper, its head of North America, about why the opportunities they see in the United States, and how they can help their American cousins serve large global clients.  

We talk about the business-to-business market, the future of fintech, and how the U.S. market differs from other places in the world.  

In this episode Brian Tate, the IPA’s CEO, and Chris Stromberg, the head of government relations, talk about what all these changes might mean and how some of the recent actions by the agencies provide clues as to their priorities.

The past year has been a busy one when it comes to payments regulation. Everything from disclosures to transaction routing has come to the attention of regulators and Congress. There is more to come in 2022.  

In this episode, Brian Tate, the IPA’s CEO, discusses the impact of some of the biggest stories from the past year and what they might mean for 2022. We cover the PayPal Lawsuit, earned wage access and buy-now-pay-later products, the fight between the FDIC and the CFPB, and much more.