The United Kingdom is moving toward regulating the fast-growing buy now, pay later (BNPl) market. Draft legislation published recently by the UK government would render BNPL agreements subject to rules established by the Financial Conduct Authority, a non-governmental body that regulates financial services firms there.
Under a game plan set out by HM Treasury, the UK economic and finance ministry, BNPL service providers will be required to perform affordability checks, determining if a customer has the means to repay the money. Rules pertaining to marketing also will be amended to ensure BNPL advertisements are fair, clear and not misleading.
The ETA announced its 2023 Forty Under 40 payments industry leaders. Chosen by the Electronic Transactions Association and Discover Global Network for their contributions to a variety of sectors, the new fast-tracked leaders were commended by ETA and Discover for their innovative contributions to payments technology. ETA CEO Jodie Kelley stated, "The honorees of ETA's annual Forty Under 40 represent the exciting possibilities of payments.
The future of innovative payments is bright in their hands." Kevin Jordan, head of U.S. and Canada strategic client management at Discover Global Network and ETA executive sponsor, agreed the 2023 class of Forty Under 40 reflects a diverse, evolving industry.
Despite reporting to the contrary, Visa remains committed to the cryptocurrency market, according to Cuy Sheffield, Visa's chief crypto honcho. And Visa, it appears, is not alone. Reuters reported on Feb. 28, 2023, citing unnamed sources, that both Visa and Mastercard have put the brakes on plans to forge new partnerships with crypto firms. And several other news outlets picked up the story and ran with it.
But Sheffield quickly put the brakes on the rumor instead, insisting that as far as Visa is concerned, the news story is inaccurate. Recent announcements from Visa, as well as Mastercard, seem to back this up. The crypto market has been in a free fall, with failures of big shots like FTX and Block FI shaking markets and prompting calls for regulation.
A new report from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau revealed that consumers using buy now, pay later (BNPL) schemes are heavy users of other forms of credit—like credit cards and payday loans—and are more likely to exhibit signs of financial distress than non-users. But it remains unclear whether regulations specific to BNPL are necessary, the consumer watchdog agency said.
"A common misconception of Buy Now, Pay Later borrowers is that they lack access to other forms of credit," stated CFPB Director Rohit Chopra. "Our analysis shows that these borrowers are more likely to use other credit products. Since Buy Now, Pay Later is like other forms of credit, we are working to ensure that borrowers have similar protections and that companies play by the same rules." But Chopra and the CFPB stopped short of calling for outright regulation of BNPL.
Following the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank on March 10, 2023, financial and tech communities are applauding swift measures by UK and U.S. regulators to avert an international banking crisis. After working all weekend, the UK Treasury and Bank of England disclosed Mon., March 13, that HSBC will acquire SVP's UK subsidiary, which holds 6.7 billion pounds, the equivalent of $8.1 billion in customer deposits.
As reports of the transaction circulated, media sources noted the United States has yet to find a buyer for the Santa Clara, Calif.-based bank. SVB, a leading commercial bank and major bank for tech startups with $209 billion in reported assets in 2022, is the largest bank to fail since Washington Mutual closed its doors in 2008. 
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