The payments & online selling stories our desk judged worth your time, written so anyone can follow them.
Most international payments reach the recipient's bank in minutes, but local rules and hours can still slow the final step, say speakers at a Money20/20 panel.
Read more: Money crosses borders fast, but getting it to land still takes timeA marketplace software company says AI assistants may soon search, compare and buy for shoppers, so stores need product details that software can read.
Read more: Retailers get ready for shopping done by AI assistantsAccertify, a fraud-prevention company, is letting payment and sales platforms offer its tools, so your provider may soon add fraud checks beyond checkout.
Read more: Fraud-prevention firm Accertify opens a partner program for payment and sales platformsFestive sales bring fake sites and risky payment requests. Five quick checks on the site, seller and payment screen can keep a bargain from becoming a loss.
Read more: Five quick checks to avoid online shopping fraud during salesEcommpay has launched an AI chatbot for small businesses that take card and online payments without a finance team. Details are still thin.
Read more: Payments company Ecommpay launches AI chatbot for small businessesGap Inc. is using an AI tool called Bridgette to handle hiring chores as it expects about 200,000 seasonal job applications. Here is what that means if you apply.
Read more: Gap now uses an AI helper to screen holiday job applicantsVisa and Mastercard agreed to end a rule that makes shops take all their cards, but experts say few stores will turn any away. Here is why.
Read more: Visa and Mastercard drop a card rule, but shops may not use itElavon's CEO says banks should go slow on AI shopping agents to avoid repeating 25 years of fraud mistakes, and he says the bank-backed Paze wallet is ready to pilot.
Read more: A big bank's payments chief wants AI shopping agents to slow downeBay's quarterly revenue rose 14% to $3.2 billion, and the company says AI tools are making it easier to list and sell used items.
Read more: eBay sales jump 14% as more people buy and sell used itemsThe head of the CFTC says markets for AI computing costs may be coming, and that rules for AI trading software are still unsettled. Here is what that could mean.
Read more: US trading regulator eyes futures contracts for AI computing costsShopify's Shop Pay wallet now works inside AI assistants like Copilot and Muse, and the company added a free fraud and dispute tool for merchants.
Read more: Shopify lets AI shopping assistants pay for items at its storesNielsenIQ, a shopper-tracking firm, and Google are partnering on AI that can find and buy products. Sellers should watch how their listings read.
Read more: NielsenIQ and Google team up on AI that shops for youThe FTC had 19 fake versions of its own website taken down. Imposter scams cost people $3.5 billion in 2025, so a pause before paying or clicking matters.
Read more: Government shut down 19 fake websites posing as the FTCAmazon says over 400 million people have used its Alexa shopping helper in a year, and they spend 50% more. Here is what that means when you shop.
Read more: Over 400 million people have used Amazon's Alexa shopping helperGoogle's Gemini 4 Carbon now tops an independent AI ranking, and OpenAI halved the price of its mid-tier model. Cheaper AI could reach your business tools.
Read more: Google's new AI model takes the top spot as OpenAI cuts pricesAmazon's CEO says outside AI shopping assistants send only a sliver of its visitors, while shoppers using Amazon's own Alexa for Shopping buy more and spend more.
Read more: Amazon says outside AI shopping assistants send it very little trafficCanadian AI firm Cohere raised about $5 billion to build an alternative to US and Chinese AI. For businesses, that could mean more choice on price and data.
Read more: Canadian AI company Cohere raises about $5 billion to rival US and ChinaSymbotic says Walmart will commit about $6 billion more to warehouse automation, a sign the systems behind store shelves are changing fast.
Read more: Walmart commits another $6 billion to warehouse robot technologyDream, a startup from two former Palantir leaders, raised $17 million for AI that designs whole buildings. It could change how projects get planned and priced.
Read more: Former Palantir leaders raise $17 million for AI that designs buildingsVisa says nearly 50 AI partners are live and is testing agents that pay approved business invoices, so the question of trust and spending limits is coming fast.
Read more: Visa is getting ready for AI assistants that shop and pay for youKohl's shoppers in the U.S. can now split purchases into payments with Klarna online and in the app, which could help holiday budgets and tempt extra spending.
Read more: Kohl's now lets shoppers pay in installments through KlarnaUnilever's AI agents now enter a customer order in about 90 seconds instead of 15 to 20 minutes, and show how any business could handle messy orders.
Read more: Unilever's AI helpers now enter customer orders in 90 seconds, not 20 minutesWEX reported record quarterly revenue of $780.1 million and is testing an AI account manager that could bring big-client service to small fleets.
Read more: WEX posts record $780.1 million quarter as it adds AI to its productsDoorDash has agreed to buy Instacart for $17 billion. Regulators must approve it first, so the effect on grocery fees and store choice is still unclear.
Read more: DoorDash plans to buy Instacart for $17 billion
