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Digital money, 2026: trends reshaping payments, fintech, and fraud.
How money will move in 2026: AI, regulation, and the new rules of payments
Payments and fintech are evolving fast. From AI-driven fraud and regulatory shifts to new commerce models and alternative payment methods, this newsletter curates the most important trends, forward-looking insights, and real-world perspectives from across the financial ecosystem.
Whether you work in banking, payments, fraud, fintech, or ecommerce, our goal is simple: help you know what matters now and anticipate what will matter soon, turning trends into strategic advantages.
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Featured insights |
1. European instant payments: sovereignty and cross-border interoperability
Bizum
Fernando Rodríguez Ferrer, Chief International Business Officer
Payments sovereignty moves from policy discussion to infrastructure priority as Europe looks to strengthen instant payments capabilities and interoperability across the region.
Our take: Control, resilience, and interoperability become central in Europe’s payments strategy.
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2. Payments in transition: the forces shaping the future of global money movement
McKinsey
Albion Murati, Partner
Fragmentation, stablecoins, and AI are reshaping payments. Innovation, not scale, will drive the next phase of global money movement.
Our take: Global payments leadership is being redefined, as new entrants use faster, more flexible payments infrastructures.
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3. Navigating the future: how agentic commerce is redefining payments
Oliver Wyman
Dr. Stephen Whitehouse, Partner
Agentic commerce introduces AI systems that can search, decide, and transact on behalf of users, forcing banks and ecosystem players to rethink roles, risk, infrastructure, and value capture.
Our take: AI agents could be the new actors in payment initiations and decision-making.
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4. Stablecoins, the once-in-a-lifetime shift in payments
Triple-A
Eric Barbier, Founder and CEO
Stablecoins are evolving from crypto-native instruments into payment and treasury tools with real commercial use cases. They stand to revolutionise cross-border flows, settlements, and liquidity management.
Our take: Stablecoins are challenging how financial institutions monetise settlement and money movement.
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5. Navigating regulatory change: compliance and the future of digital payments
UniCredit
Gianluca D’Imperio, Compliance VP
In 2026, Europe’s identity, access, and competitive payments landscape will be fundamentally influenced by converging regulations – PSD3/PSR, Digital Euro, eIDAS 2.0, and Digital Omnibus.
Our take: Regulatory readiness will determine speed to market.
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6. Why the future of digital wallets depends on interoperability at scale
Unlimit
Irene Skrynova, Chief Customer Officer
As the digital wallet ecosystem grows, interoperability will heavily influence scale, user experience, and cross-border functionality.
Our take: Wallet success will depend on ecosystem connectivity, more than features alone.
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7. Global orchestration for a real‑time, APM‑driven payments era
ACI Worldwide
Nick Craig, Head of Europe and Middle East
The rapid growth of real-time payments, A2A transfers, and alternative payment methods (APMs) reshapes the global payments landscape.
Our take: Payment complexity exceeds IT challenges, becoming a growth constraint.
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8. 2026 fraud forecast: AI, deepfakes, and rising cybercrime risks
The Paypers
Oana Ifrim, Lead Editor
The growth of industrialised, AI-powered fraud is faster than how traditional detection models can adapt. What are the worldwide effects on banks, consumers, businesses, and digital platforms?
Our take: Fraud evolves into an AI-driven arms race, with a direct impact on revenue.
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Trends Snapshot
From all the contributions, artificial intelligence emerges as the number 1 trend reshaping payments, influencing fraud, orchestration, customer interaction, and risk management. At the same time, how a company deploys innovation is redefined by regulatory change and instant payments infrastructure. |
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Contributing Partners
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About This Newsletter
The Paypers brings together expert views from across the financial ecosystem, including payments providers, fintechs, banks, fraud specialists, and commerce leaders. We help industry professionals stay ahead of change. Want to contribute an insight or trend for a future edition? Get in touch! |
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