Welcome to the first Power of Payments podcast episode of 2023. For our first episode of the year, we’re doing something a little different. Instead of doing a round-up of recent news in the world of payments, this week we’re going to talk about what the near future looks like for the payments industry. To kick off my payments coverage for 2023, I wanted to hear from people in the industry about what they believed would be the most important trends in payments this year. I asked a number of experts from across the payments spectrum to share their thoughts with me and predict what trends we can expect from the industry in the next 12 months. Based on those predictions, I’ve compiled 10 trends that are likely to shape the payments landscape this year. Important themes for 2023 – in no particular order – involve B2B payments, M&A activity, real-time payments, digital wallets, fraud, sustainability, and more.

Today on the Tearsheet Podcast we have Trish Mosconi, chief strategy officer at Synchrony. In addition to strategy for the bank, she also heads up the firm’s venture investing and M&A activities.  We discuss her mandate and how Synchrony looks at investing and partnering with fintech as it continues to invest in its consumer finance platform. I appreciate how Trish and the bank have paired strategy to both investing for the long term and partnering for the present. The deterioration of the investment environment around fintechs can definitely play into Synchrony’s plans.  Trish Mosconi is my guest today on the Tearsheet Podcast.

In episode 4, we talk about how Gen Z is changing the financial space in e-commerce. They prefer shopping experiences that are more convenient and spontaneous, seamlessly interwoven with social media. Our host, Rebecca Cohen is joined by Mallory Russell, head of global content at Square, Michael Saadat, head of public policy at Block, and Maran Nalluswami, SVP of diversified and value at Synchrony.

In our journey of reducing our carbon footprint, it turns out that it’s not only what we buy that can make the difference — how we pay for things can play a part, too. According to a GoCardless study, using alternative payment methods like ACH can help consumers lower their carbon footprint by generating zero carbon emissions. This comes in comparison to credit cards, which in 2021 generated an amount of CO2 so high it was the equivalent of driving a diesel car around the Earth approximately 43,000 times. Considering that consumers are actively looking for more ways to reduce their environmental impact, how should we think about payments? How can this sector decarbonize, and what impact can that have? To help us answer these questions, I’ve invited Ben Knight, Head of Environmental Sustainability at GoCardless, a direct bank payment solutions company. Ben’s diverse experience paired with his passion for sustainability and the fact that he’s just a great person to talk to, resulted in a really fun conversation.

If you’ve been to Money 20/20 the past couple of years, you’re likely to have encountered Zeta. Maybe you were one of the 10,000 people who attended the Journey and Foreigner concerts the company sponsored. Or maybe you stopped by the firm’s big booth at the center of the floor. That type of marketing – what founder Bhavin Turakhia likes to call ‘nuclear strikes’ – is helping the credit card as a service firm mature in the US. Bhavin shares with us the playbook he’s using to grow Zeta, honed from his experience building and growing three other SaaS firms in his career. We discuss why Zeta targets the largest banks and fintechs and how the firm is landing and expanding via enterprise sales. Talking to Bhavin is like talking to a professor of real life business – he readily shares his experiences and frameworks for how he’s thinking about scaling his fintech firm. Bhavin Turakhia is my guest today on the Tearsheet Podcast.

In episode #3 of the Steez podcast, we talk about FinTok, and why Gen Zers are getting their financial education from social media. Our host, Rebecca Cohen is joined by Michael Wang, founder, and CEO of Prometheus, Jeff Frommer, Chief Content Officer at MoneyLion, and Michael Borough founder of Altro.

Welcome back to the Power of Payments podcast. I’m your host Ismail Umar, and in today’s episode, we will discuss Walmart’s growing interest in BNPL and financial services, and Stripe’s new fiat-to-crypto payment offering. We will also talk about Wise and Deel’s new feature for global payroll, and the potential benefits and pitfalls of FedNow for B2B payments.

Welcome to the Tearsheet Podcast. I’m Tearsheet’s editor in chief, Zack Miller. I like talking to investors in financial services and fintech. I find that their perspectives, particularly around trends and big picture moves, are helpful in understanding what’s going on. Today’s guest is Rex Salisbury, entrepreneur, investor, and builder. He recently left Andreesen Horowitz to return to his roots, building networks of fintech founders and helping them with connections and expertise. He recently launched a $20 million fund and has made 9 investments so far. I spoke to Rex about his background as a community builder and the impact that has on the companies he invests in. We talk about his time at a16z, which saw massive growth in the team and the space. Rex shares why he looks to invest in ‘deep, boring, and broken’ spaces in the financial technology stack and why ‘fitnech at the intersection of something’ is a good investment strategy. Our broad reaching talk spans mortgage software to fintech community meetups in San Francisco to Big Tech’s interest in financial services. Rex Salisbury is my guest today on the Tearsheet Podcast.

Today, we're talking about artificial intelligence – a tool uniquely positioned to help manage the complex issues presented by climate change. Due to its capacity to gather, complete, and interpret large, complex datasets on emissions, climate impact, and more, it can be used to support all stakeholders in taking a more informed and data-driven approach to combating carbon emissions and building a greener society. To help us understand more about how AI can help us solve the climate crisis, I've invited BCG's leading sustainability expert Mike Lyons to expand upon the real-world, practical applications for climate AI. To read the transcript of our conversation, please visit Tearsheet.co Sign up here for the Green Finance Newsletter: https://tearsheet.co/newsletters/

Welcome to the Tearsheet Podcast. I’m Tearsheet's Editor, Zack Miller. There are a couple of things about advances in financial services that continuously get me juiced – even after a decade of covering the space. One is when new products emerge that just work, whether that’s through integrating into existing platforms or through automation. There’s something almost magical when that happens. Another thing that inspires is inclusiveness – there’s so much being done at incumbents and fintechs that will make financial services more inclusive in the future. SecureSave ticks both of those boxes. It’s trying to popularize the emergency savings account. Haven’t heard of an ESA? That’s OK, I hadn’t either but it functions similar to a Health Savings Account and is intended to help employees save for an emergency. Offered through employers, an ESA is likely to have the same preferred tax treatment an HSA has in the future if Devin Miller has his way. With a strong background in financial software, Devin is a co-founder of SecureSave and is following the HSA playbook for bringing his firm and HSAs to market. Devin Miller is my guest today on the Tearsheet Podcast.