Core Insights - Visa Inc. is recognized as one of the 12 Best Stocks to Buy for the Long Term [1] - Piper Sandler has adjusted its price target for Visa shares from $165 to $160 while maintaining an Overweight rating [2] - Visa's revenue is projected to grow at a compound annual rate of 12.9% from fiscal 2020 to fiscal 2025, with expectations of continued double-digit growth in the coming years [3] Market Dynamics - The U.S. remains Visa's largest market, but faster growth is anticipated in emerging economies such as parts of Asia, Africa, and Latin America, where digital payments are still evolving [4] - The shift towards cashless and electronic payments, along with Visa's value-added services like analytics, consulting, and cybersecurity, are key drivers of growth as commerce becomes more digital [2][4] Company Overview - Visa Inc. operates as a global payments technology company, facilitating commerce and money movement across over 200 countries and territories [5]

Amazon’s job cuts announced this week delivered another blow to the tech labor force in the company’s headquarters city of Seattle, which was already losing jobs, Bloomberg reported Friday (Jan. 30).By completing this form, you agree to receive marketing communications from PYMNTS and to the sharing of your information with our sponsor, if applicable, in accordance with our Privacy Policy and Terms and Conditions .Complete the form to unlock this article and enjoy unlimited free access to all PYMNTS content ...

Core Insights - Visa Inc. is a well-established company with a significant global presence, facilitating money movement for consumers, merchants, banks, and governments worldwide [1] Company Overview - Visa operates as a critical component of the global financial infrastructure, enabling transactions across various platforms and regions [1] Investment Perspective - The analysis focuses on providing objective, data-driven insights, particularly on small- to mid-cap companies, while also considering large-cap firms like Visa to offer a comprehensive view of the equity markets [1]

His ability to consistently beat the market has drawn big money, with the Contrafund's assets under management recently above $176 billion. Danoff, however, plans to step away from the fund: He is set to retire at year's end, though he will stay with Fidelity in an advisory capacity, per documents filed this week. What makes Danoff a remarkable portfolio manager is that "his success wasn't narrowly confined to one part of his career," Morningstar analyst Robby Greengold told Investopedia. Some portfolio man ...

Core Insights - Block has opened a new office in Dublin, Ireland, to expand its European presence in the fintech sector [6] - The Dublin office will feature a product demo lab to showcase Block's offerings to potential customers [6] - The strategic advantages of Ireland were cited as a reason for choosing this location, although specific details were not provided [4] Company Overview - Block, headquartered in Oakland, California, also has offices in London and offers products like Square and Afterpay [4] - The CEO of Block's Square International emphasized the goal of fostering dialogue on financial innovation and ensuring the ecosystem serves all stakeholders [6] Industry Context - Dublin is recognized as a hub for fintech activity in Europe, hosting major payment companies such as Adyen and Stripe, along with multinational corporations like Microsoft and Mastercard [3]

Core Insights - Visa is launching advisory services to assist clients in utilizing stablecoins, responding to increased demand in the payments ecosystem [2][3] - The company has begun offering these services as of last month, despite anticipating limited consumer use cases for stablecoins in the U.S. [2] - Visa's stablecoin settlement services for corporate clients have an annualized run rate of approximately $4.6 billion globally [4] Group 1: Market Demand and Strategy - There is growing interest from both stablecoin-native and traditional clients in developing stablecoin strategies, indicating a shift in the payments landscape [3] - Visa aims to create a secure and seamless interoperable layer between stablecoins and traditional fiat payments, targeting a significant $20 trillion cross-border market opportunity [5] Group 2: Competitive Landscape - Analysts suggest that stablecoins could pose a threat to established payment players like Visa, especially with new legislation supporting digital asset infrastructure [6] - Visa's stablecoin strategy is viewed as more sophisticated compared to competitors like Mastercard, focusing on comprehensive infrastructure and settlement solutions [7]

MasterCard (NYSE: MA) Maintains Strong Position in Financial Services IndustryMasterCard (NYSE: MA) is a leading global payments technology company that plays a pivotal role in connecting various stakeholders in the financial ecosystem. It offers a comprehensive suite of payment solutions and services, including credit, debit, and prepaid cards. MasterCard competes with other significant entities in the financial services sector, such as Visa and American Express.On January 29, 2026, Goldman Sachs reaffirme ...

Core Insights - Mastercard reported a 7% year-over-year increase in worldwide gross dollar volume (GDV) on a local currency basis, with 4% growth in the U.S. and 9% growth outside the U.S. [1] - The company achieved a 15% increase in net revenues for Q4 on a non-GAAP currency-neutral basis, driven by a 22% growth in value-added services and solutions [2][6] - Mastercard executives highlighted a strong performance in 2025, emphasizing double-digit revenue growth and continued momentum in value-added services [3] Financial Performance - For Q4 2025, Mastercard's net revenues rose approximately 15% on a non-GAAP, currency-neutral basis, with value-added services growth of around 22% [6] - Full-year 2025 results showed value-added services and solutions delivering net revenue growth of 21%, or 18% excluding acquisitions, on a currency-neutral basis [11] - The company expects high-end low-double-digit net revenue growth for 2026, with a one-time restructuring charge of approximately $200 million affecting about 4% of employees [4][13] Strategic Initiatives - Mastercard secured hundreds of new issuing deals globally, including an extension with Capital One and multiple regional wins in Türkiye, Latin America, and South Africa [5][9] - The company is focusing on emerging opportunities such as stablecoins and agentic commerce, with ongoing investments in digital assets and partnerships [12] - Mastercard's tokenization efforts have reached nearly 40% of all transactions, indicating a strong emphasis on security and innovation [11] Government Grants and Expense Management - Mastercard received multi-year government grants that are expected to benefit operating expenses primarily in 2025 and 2026, improving operating expense growth by around 5.5 percentage points [7][8] - Total adjusted operating expenses increased by 12% in Q4, with a 5 percentage point impact from acquisitions, while underlying expense growth was attributed to strategic initiatives [8] Capital Return and Shareholder Value - The company repurchased $3.6 billion of stock in the quarter, with an additional $715 million repurchased through January 26, 2026 [4][16] - Fourth-quarter EPS was reported at $4.76, including a $0.10 contribution from share repurchases [16]

Summary of Agentic Payments Conference Call Industry Overview - **Industry**: Technology - Payments - **Key Concept**: Agentic Commerce, representing a ~$192 billion GMV opportunity by 2030, is set to transform online shopping by enabling agents to execute transactions on behalf of customers, thus reshaping the traditional e-commerce funnel and increasing complexity in payment processes [1][2][10]. Core Insights - **Market Growth**: Agentic commerce is projected to grow from $8 billion in 2026 (~1% of US e-commerce) to $192 billion in 2030 (~10% of US e-commerce), indicating a ~121% CAGR compared to 7.5% for overall e-commerce [3][10]. - **Complexity in Transactions**: The introduction of agents will complicate online transactions, necessitating explicit identity verification, consent, and new fraud detection models tailored for non-human behavior [3][4]. - **Key Beneficiaries**: Companies like Adyen, Mastercard, and Visa are expected to benefit significantly from this shift, as they can provide the necessary infrastructure and services to support agentic commerce [4][5]. Competitive Landscape - **Winners**: Adyen is identified as a top pick due to its single-platform architecture, which positions it well to act as a "universal connector" across agentic protocols [4][57]. - **Challenges for Others**: Companies with fragmented or legacy infrastructures, such as Nexi and PayPal, may face significant challenges as consumer-facing checkouts become less visible in an agent-mediated environment [5][9]. Adoption and Use Cases - **Adoption Rates**: Current adoption of LLM platforms is below 50%, but over 60% of younger individuals report using them recently, indicating a growing trend towards agentic commerce [12][13]. - **Use Cases**: Examples include agents autonomously purchasing items when they become available or securing concert tickets on behalf of users, showcasing the potential for agents to handle complex transactions [11][12]. Payment Processing Dynamics - **Evolution of Payment Relationships**: While the core payment infrastructure remains unchanged, the introduction of agents adds complexity, requiring payment service providers (PSPs) to adapt their fraud detection and authentication processes [16][32]. - **New Protocols**: The development of protocols like the Trusted Agent Protocol (TAP) and Agent Payments Protocol (AP2) aims to address the challenges posed by agentic commerce, focusing on agent legitimacy and delegated payment authority [33][34]. Economic Implications - **Incrementality vs. Substitution**: The impact of agentic commerce on overall industry growth is debated, with expectations that it will primarily drive incremental growth rather than cannibalizing existing volumes [36][37]. - **Take Rates**: The economic model for agentic commerce is still evolving, with potential scenarios suggesting that agentic transactions could either maintain or compress existing take rates for PSPs [43][49]. Strategic Recommendations - **PSP Adaptation**: Winning PSPs will need to evolve from commodity processors to optimization and orchestration engines, focusing on enhancing security, identity verification, and fraud prevention capabilities [54][55]. - **Investment Focus**: Adyen is highlighted as a strong investment opportunity due to its robust infrastructure and growth potential in the agentic commerce space, with expectations of a 21% CAGR in net revenue through 2028 [57]. Conclusion - The agentic commerce landscape is poised for significant transformation, with key players needing to adapt to new complexities and opportunities. The focus on security, identity, and optimization will be crucial for success in this evolving market.

Core Insights - Executives warned that the Credit Card Competition Act could be harmful to the payments industry, arguing that the market already faces significant competition from various payment methods [14] - Visa reported fiscal Q1 revenue of $10.9 billion, reflecting a 15% year-over-year increase, with payments volume rising 8% in constant dollars to nearly $4 trillion [3][10] - The company emphasized the importance of credentials, stating that they now total over 5 billion worldwide, which anchor its global payments architecture [4] Agentic Commerce and Digital Payments - Management highlighted agentic commerce, Visa Direct, and B2B flows as key growth areas, with Visa Direct transactions increasing 23% year over year to 3.7 billion [8] - The Visa Intelligent Commerce platform utilizes tokens for agentic payments, with over 100 partners engaged [6][7] - Tap-to-pay penetration exceeded 80% of face-to-face transactions globally, with U.S. usage nearing 70% [5] Financial Performance - Global payment volume rose 8% in constant dollars, with cross-border volume increasing 11% [10] - Value-added services revenue surged 28% to $3.2 billion, contributing significantly to Visa's total revenue growth for the quarter [13] - Consumer spending showed resilience, with growth consistent across various spend bands, indicating stability in both discretionary and non-discretionary categories [12] Stablecoin and B2B Developments - Visa is testing stablecoin use cases, reporting an annualized settlement run rate of $4.6 billion, primarily for cross-border payments and markets with currency volatility [9] - Commercial and Money Movement Solutions revenue grew 20% in constant dollars, supported by a 10% increase in commercial payments volume [8] Legislative Concerns - Visa is actively briefing lawmakers on the potential negative impacts of the Credit Card Competition Act, warning of reduced access to credit and weaker security protections [14][15] - Management guided for full-year revenue growth in the low double digits, with shares down 1.4% in after-hours trading [15]