(Finance) – Digital payments are growing all over the world as their adoption – via websites, apps or in-store platforms – continues to grow. Looking to 2025, the future of payments appears increasingly digital, flexible and driven by consumer choice. Account-to-account (A2A) payments are giving shoppers more ways to pay, biometrics are reducing our reliance on passwords and pins, and globalization is forcing a change in complex and slow cross-border payments. Meanwhile, artificial intelligence (AI) is helping to set new standards in security and usability.
Here, according to VISA, are six key trends that will characterize payments in 2025.
Artificial intelligence protects against fraud
AI will play a crucial role in personalizing payment experiences and improving fraud detection capabilities, creating a profound impact on consumers and sellers. We can expect deep learning algorithms to become increasingly sophisticated in analyzing transaction patterns and identifying potential risks in real time.
Digital identity simplifies authentication
Passwords, security questions and even credit card numbers have long been used by people, and scammers have taken advantage of this. But things are changing. Today and increasingly in the future, authentication will be based on highly secure credentials: the face, fingerprints or other biometric elements. This change will improve security and convenience by reducing reliance on traditional PINs and passwords. Products like Visa Payment Passkey do just that. For example, Visa partnered with QNB in Qatar to launch the enhanced version of Visa Click to Pay for retailers, marking the world’s first implementation of biometric authentication and setting a new standard for secure, seamless and convenient online payments.
Using biometric markers in payment authentication – and doing so in line with best practices in data privacy, cybersecurity and AI governance – helps make the entire process more convenient and secure.
Real-time payments gain importance globally
In 2025, the development of real-time payments (RTP) will be influenced by the performance of the world’s major economies. In Europe, the Single Euro Payments Area (SEPA) instant credit transfer system will be widely adopted, facilitating instant euro transactions across EU borders.
While this progress represents a significant step forward, challenges remain. National governments that have attempted to operate RTP networks themselves have faced issues such as fraud, security vulnerabilities, availability issues, and lack of cross-border/fx capabilities. Collaboration with the private sector, including companies like Visa, can help overcome these challenges by providing expertise and resources to improve security, interoperability and cross-border capabilities.
The crucial task for regulators, policymakers and the entire payments ecosystem is to balance innovation and security, while protecting against risks associated with the instantaneous and irreversible nature of RTP payments. Ensuring the openness and interoperability of these national networks is also critical to facilitating global trade and growth.
A2A payments are simplified
Card payments offer a certain experience, safety and security that cardless payments simply don’t provide. But things are changing.
Electronic payments, such as ACH transfers, have been largely left out of the digital revolution. Products such as pay by bank are digitizing and simplifying A2A payments, offering consumers more ways to pay. Real-time payments have become popular and widespread, and at the same time, they have been targeted by scammers. Innovative tools, such as Visa Protect for A2A Payments, are becoming popular to help mitigate fraud on RTP networks.
Embedded finance is growing
Embedded finance consists of embedding third-party financial products and services into non-financial digital platforms. Payment solutions are increasingly integrated, particularly in the merchant ecosystem. We are also seeing an increase in embedded finance lending products and white-label payment solutions.
It could be an advantage from four points of view: suppliers gain from low-cost distribution; enablers capitalize on the demand for simplicity and convenience, distributors improve platform engagement, and most importantly, end users get contextualized financial services in one place.
Cross-border payments travel fast
Cross-border money movement has historically been B2B-focused and handled primarily by traditional banks. But globalization and world trade have changed things. As consumers and small and medium-sized businesses increasingly need to send money from person to person around the world, the shortcomings of the market – too complex, expensive and slow – are becoming increasingly evident.
The expansion of real-time payment networks could revolutionize cross-border payments, but we need interoperable global RTP networks, with mechanisms to process payments in multiple currencies, not isolated national networks that cannot talk to each other. Visa Direct is a great example of a global payments network that is real-time, interoperable and enables faster and cheaper cross-border functionality.
More efficient and convenient cross-border payment solutions will allow businesses and consumers to transact without delays and fees, while simplifying currency conversions and compliance with local regulations.
“Payments they are constantly evolving to offer convenience, transparency and trust,” he said Stefano M. Stoppani, Country Manager Visa in Italy. “They allow businesses to grow, consumers to feel safe and communities to thrive. From biometric authentication to instant, seamless transactions around the world, each innovation is a step closer to meeting the needs of everyone who pays and gets paid.”