15 Nov 2021

10-Q, Member Exclusive

Green Dot and the case to make financial experiences feel calmer

• Green Dot is shifting to prioritize "Cortisol UX", a philosophy that aims to absorb user stress by embedding signals into its architecture that increase predictability of interactions.
• The product team is focusing on slowing down paths such as transaction confirmations to reduce cognitive load and uncertainty.

AI Innovation, Artificial Intelligence

Micro Case Study: How American Express is underwriting AI agent error to unlock trust in $trillion-scale agentic commerce

• This micro case study explores a burning question: if AI agents can execute payments, what ensures they execute the right ones?
• We explore this through American Express’s ACE Developer Kit, which verifies intent before execution.

Opinion

Letter from the Editor: Gen Z isn’t confused about money; the system is confusing them

• Gen Z is stitching together its own financial stack across apps, changing what banking relationships look like in the process.
• What Gen Z is really after is contextual relevance – a feeling that the product understands where they are and what they need in that moment.

Banking, Partner

Beyond payments: Why SMBs need both contactless acceptance and modern fraud controls

• Small businesses must balance modern payment demands with rising fraud risks, as contactless payments grow while credit card fraud surges.
• Banking partners can help by making enterprise-grade fraud protections, like ACH controls, debit blocks, and 2FA, accessible to SMBs.

Banking, Lending, Member Exclusive

LendingClub rebrands to Happen Bank as its identity catches up to its model

• LendingClub (soon Happen Bank) did what few scaled fintechs manage cleanly: it let the business lead, and the brand follow.
• The company remains lending-centric, but is building out a broader post-loan experience.