• Advancing Payments

    Special Interest Group (SIG) Sessions at MAG Payments Conference 26
    Kelly Andrus

    Special Interest Group (SIG) Sessions at MAG Payments Conference 26

    Sep 9, 2026

    What are other retailers seeing? What challenges are they facing? And perhaps most importantly, how are they addressing them? That’s what makes our Special Interest Groups (SIGs) such a valuable part of the MAG Payments Conference. They provide an opportunity for merchants to step away from the formal conference agenda and have open, peer-to-peer conversations about the issues that matter most.

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  • MAG Insider

    Globetrotting with the MAG: From Nashville to Singapore
    Erica Forman

    Globetrotting with the MAG: From Nashville to Singapore

    Aug 31, 2026

    Fall is around the corner, and there are ample opportunities for you to connect with the Merchant Advisory Group (MAG) community, build your payments knowledge, and add your voice to important industry conversations. From Nashville to Singapore and online, there is plenty happening at the MAG.

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  • Policy Perspective

    Common Sense: Common Cents Act Advances in Both Chambers
    By Beth Provenzano

    Common Sense: Common Cents Act Advances in Both Chambers

    Aug 19, 2026

    The United States Senate approved S. 1525, the Common Cents Act, by Unanimous Consent just before adjourning for the August recess. Earlier this summer, the United States House of Representatives passed its version, H.R. 3074, by suspension of House rules. Both chambers used Congressional procedural motions to expedite passage of this non-controversial bill, which aims to make coin rounding easier for merchants and their customers in the wake of the penny’s retirement. Because the Senate version of the bill differs from the House version, the House will need to either vote on the Senate version or the bill will move to a Conference Committee to iron out the differences.

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  • International Perspective

    APAC Isn't Following the Future of Payments – It's Defining It!
    Paul Tunstall

    APAC Isn't Following the Future of Payments – It's Defining It!

    Aug 11, 2026

    Every conversation I have with merchants operating across Asia-Pacific reinforces the same point: there is no such thing as a single APAC payments strategy.

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  • Leadership Lens

    The State of the Payments Industry: Mid-2026
    John Drechny

    The State of the Payments Industry: Mid-2026

    Jul 23, 2026

    If you asked merchants across the industry to name their number one challenge right now, the answer wouldn't be a single technology or a single regulation. It would be the balance of delivering a better customer experience while managing transaction costs, keeping transactions secure, keeping fraud losses under control, and growing authorization rates. That balancing act has always been hard. In 2026, it's getting harder because every side of the equation is moving at once.

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  • Payments Technology

    A Seat at the Table for Merchants – Let’s Define the Future of Payments Together
    Reed Luhtanen

    A Seat at the Table for Merchants – Let’s Define the Future of Payments Together

    Jun 16, 2026

    The future of payments will be written over the next decade. For the first time in more than fifty years, new payments rails are scaling in the market. Foundational work defining the core aspects of how these networks will function is being done. Rather than standing on the sideline watching it happen, merchants need to claim their seat at the table, and the U.S. Faster Payments Council (FPC) has one saved for you.

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The Merchant Advisory Group

Driving positive change and innovation in the payments industry serving merchants' interests globally through collaboration, education, and advocacy.