2026 poised for meaningful changes in retail payments

The retail sector is preparing for a year of steady yet meaningful change in how payments are made, as industry experts say 2026 will be defined by integration and evolution rather than abrupt disruption. Retailers and payment providers are focusing on technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI), account-to-account (A2A) payments, and tokenisation alongside evolving regulation that could reshape checkout experiences and fraud prevention over time. Search trends show growing interest in digital wal ...