Payment Expert’s Fintech Unwrapped delivers the latest developing news that has shaped the sector over the course of the last week.
This week, Adyen and Visa have joined forces to make online payments safer through passkey authentication.
Also this week, Airtm and BVNK have partnered to expand stablecoin payments in emerging markets, Robinhood has tapped Ripple for stablecoin and treasury services, Kipp has been acquired to help recover declined card transactions, and Mollie has launched ChatGPT and Claude integrations for business payments.
Adyen and Visa target safer payments
Adyen has added Visa Payment Passkey to its platform, allowing consumers to authenticate online payments using their device’s existing unlock method.
The integration will be delivered through Authenticate, a module within Adyen’s AI-powered payment optimisation suite, Adyen Uplift. The technology aims to strengthen payment security and remove additional steps that can cause friction in the online checkout experience.
Visa Payment Passkey allows customers to approve online purchases using their fingerprint, face scan or device passcode. Once users set up a passkey with their banks, they can use it for future eligible payments.
Adyen’s Authenticate service uses AI to decide when a payment needs extra checks and which method to use.
Rahul Hampole, SVP Product for Payments at Adyen, said: “Authentication shouldn’t be a hurdle that disrupts the customer experience. By integrating Visa Payment Passkey into Authenticate, we are giving our merchants a seamless way to protect their customers against fraud while making online checkout faster and more intuitive using familiar device biometrics.”
Airtm and BVNK partner on stablecoin payments in emerging markets
Airtm and BVNK have teamed up to make it easier for users in emerging markets to spend and receive digital dollars through their wallets.
The partnership will connect Airtm’s global user network with BVNK’s stablecoin payment infrastructure, allowing Airtm users to pay participating retailers using funds held in their wallets.
The integration follows the launch of Airtm Connect, which allows digital asset companies, including BVNK, to connect with Airtm’s users. It will also create new ways for customers to add money to their wallets and receive payments.
The partnership will use the Stellar blockchain to move funds, aiming to provide a faster and lower-cost way to process payments. Airtm will also gain access to Mastercard‘s Global Money Platform through BVNK, which provides infrastructure for moving both traditional currencies and stablecoins.
Rubén Galindo Steckel, CEO of Airtm, said: “We believe payments should move natively on-chain – it’s simply a better way to move money. But origination is only half the story. For stablecoin payments to truly work, origination and destination need to be tightly connected. That’s why we’re excited to partner with BVNK.”
Robinhood taps Ripple for stablecoin and treasury services
Ripple and Robinhood have teamed up to expand stablecoin use, strengthen treasury operations and improve access to institutional trading services.
Ripple USD is available on Robinhood Chain and Bitstamp by Robinhood, with plans to launch in the Robinhood app later this year. Robinhood will also use the stablecoin for institutional settlements through the XRP Ledger.
The partnership will also see Robinhood integrate Ripple Treasury to manage its global finances. The platform will help automate cash and liquidity management, payments, cash flow forecasting and risk management.
The companies will take their relationship a step further through Ripple Prime, which provides financing and access to digital asset markets. Bitstamp by Robinhood will use the service for lending and margin financing across around 20 digital assets.
Monica Long, President of Ripple, said: “From bringing RLUSD to retail and institutional markets to helping Robinhood manage its own treasury operations, this partnership reflects growing institutional demand for integrated solutions that support both customer-facing offerings and core financial operations. And that’s exactly where Ripple delivers.”
Kipp acquired to expand declined payment recovery
Kipp has been acquired by an investor group led by Lifetime Value Company (LTVCo).
The acquisition will hand Kipp long-term financial backing to invest in its technology and foster relationships with more card issuers and merchants. The company will operate independently under co-founders Chanan Lavi and Nir Levy.
Kipp connects merchants and card issuers to recover transactions declined due to insufficient funds. Merchants can offer to pay a premium to have selected payments approved, while issuers control which transactions they accept.
Success rates reportedly range from 20% to 50% and Kipp operates without requiring merchants to make technical changes to their payment systems.
Lavi said: “Our focus now is expanding our US issuer and merchant network and bringing more transactions onto the platform. This acquisition gives us the long-term backing and operational resources to accelerate that work while preserving what makes Kipp valuable: issuers control their risk, merchants recover sales and consumers pay no additional fee.”
Mollie launches ChatGPT and Claude integrations for business payments
Mollie has launched integrations with ChatGPT and Claude, allowing businesses to manage more than 60 financial operations through AI assistants.
The integrations let users handle everyday tasks through conversations, such as creating payment links, managing subscriptions, preparing invoices and checking payment data.
According to a release, Businesses can connect their Mollie accounts to their preferred AI assistant and can control which account features their AI assistant can access.
AI assistants can’t move money without human approval. Users must review and authorise all transactions, and existing account permissions and security limits apply.
Rogier Schoute, Chief Product Officer at Mollie, said: “Entrepreneurs and finance teams want to spend their time growing their business, not managing administrative routines. By bringing regulated financial capabilities directly into everyday conversational workspaces, we are making financial management intuitive and frictionless.”
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