A LOOK FORWARD What Executives Wish for America And the World In 2021 DECEMBER 2020 What Executives Wish for America And the World In 2021 06 ACI Worldwide 42 FIS 78 Kount 114 Spreedly Innovation Will Accelerate The Digital Engaging Customers Wherever They May Be Doing Whatever It Takes To Protect Partners Importance Of Health And Safety (Along With Economy In 2021 Royal Cole, senior vice president, And Customers From Digital Fraud Payments Flexibility And Optimization) Debbie Guerra, executive vice president head of FI payments Brad Wiskirchen, CEO Justin Benson, CEO of merchant payments and payments intelligence solutions 46 FISPAN 82 NCR 118 Tango Card Embedded Banking Will Position Businesses Financial Institutions Will Need To Continue Innovations Through Uncertainty 10 Alacriti To Thrive Post-Pandemic Innovating Nat Salvione, chief commercial officer 2021: A Bright Future For Payments Lisa Shields, founder and CEO Doug Brown, senior vice president and general Manish Gurukula, CEO manager, NCR Digital Banking 122 Ternio 50 Flywire How COVID-19 Accelerated I Wish For Embedded Payments To Become 86 NorthLane The Adoption Of Digital Payments 14 Blackhawk Network 2020: Better Connected Through Reflection Ubiquitous In 2021 Let’s Keep The Spirit Of Innovation In The Cryptocurrency Space And Focus Ryan Frere, executive vice president Seth Brennan, CEO Daniel Gouldman, CEO Talbott Roche, CEO and general manager, B2B 90 Omni 126 The Clearing House 18 Brighterion 54 GeoGuard Balanced Approach To Ensure Zero Margin 2021 Innovation Goal: Better Payments For All Mastercard: Building An Inclusive Economy Forget Space — 2021 Is A Digital Odyssey Between Politics And Technologies Russ Waterhouse, executive vice president, Sudhir Jha, Mastercard senior vice president David Briggs, founder and CEO Angélica León, chief strategy officer product development and strategy and head of Brighterion 58 GIACT 130 Transcard 94 PAAY It’s Time To Fight Back 2021: The Year Of Small Business Here’s To (Buyer And Seller) Unity In 2021 22 Citcon Melissa Townsley-Solis, head of GIACT Chris Fuller, president Payments Can Be The ‘Digital Glue’ Yitz Mendlowitz, founder and CEO For Retailers Chuck Huang, founder and CEO 62 i2c 98 Pollante 134 Vindicia Embracing Connectedness The Payments Industry Cannot Be Accelerating Subscription Growth And Unpredictability Complacent About Supporting In The New Normal 26 Citi Amir Wain, founder and CEO Sharath Dorbala, CEO How 2020’s Challenges Have Highlighted Small Businesses The World’s Resilience Jonathan Hughes, co-founder and CEO, 66 Ingo Money Pollinate Horizons Manish Kohli, global head of payments 138 Western Union and receivables Banks And FinTechs, Together At Last Western Union: Global citizens are the hope Drew Edwards, CEO 102 PSCU for the future 30 CSI Accelerated Digital-First Strategy Hikmet Ersek, President, CEO and Director Payments: Getting Back To Normal 70 Jazzcash Drives Priorities For 2021 Is Not Good Enough Why We Need To Make 2021 Chuck Fagan, president and CEO 142 WEX David Disque, president The Year Of Digital Financial Inclusion 2021 Industry Outlook: Accelerating Change In Developing Markets 106 Rectangle Health Sergi Herrero, co-CEO at VEON In B2B Payments A Bridge To Recovery And Revenue Jay Dearborn, president, corporate payments 34 Cybersource With Healthcare Payment Tools Technology And Collaboration Will Be Key 74 J.P. Morgan Dominick Colabella, CEO In 2021 Rapid Digitization And A New Focus 146 Worldpay from FIS Carleigh Jaques, general manager for On ESG Considerations Are Now Part Of 2021 Is The Year Of Recovery Cybersource and Authorize.Net 110 Scalefast How The Global Trade Industry Functions A New World Order: Our Hopes For The And Realignment Natasha Condon, global head of core trade Global Economy And eCommerce Industry Jim Johnson, head of Worldpay from FIS 38 Elan Olivier Schott, co-founder and 2021: The Positive Impact Of Payments chief product officer Matt Carpenter, senior vice president, market director, Elan Financial Services It started with a simple premise. PYMNTS asked a cross-section of business dynamics that will define the there’s an old school way of looking at the companies we work with to give us their take on their wishes for year. A few themes stood out from the current digital payments landscape. the world as we approach 2021. In addition, we wanted to know how the companies and executives that But these responses indicate that these companies and executives were planning for a new era when submitted responses to our request. the legacy world of financial services businesses and the economy start to bounce back. The first was the move from digital will move closer to the new school transformation to digital acceleration. of FinTechs and APIs during 2021. Companies are not going to be And the world of exclusive access to satisfied with the progress made during financial products will meet the new 2020’s digital transformation. They world of inclusion. Readers will learn Lest anyone think the responses were the overall economic picture from will continue to push the issue, taking about the technologies that make predictable and safe, think again. What looking a lot worse than it did. As one accelerated business models like buy companies hopeful in 2021, but they we heard from this group was inspiring, executive writing for this project put now, pay later into the new year, and will also be surprised to see more hopeful and promising. It’s not just the it, 2020 represented “innovation under doubling down on innovations that will intangible elements. Some words that potential end of the pandemic that adversity.” serve the consumer’s wish to keep appear often in this collection: agility, created this output. It was the sum their hands off everything from cards opportunity, resilience, adaptability and total of a year that was part tragic, part It’s almost impossible not to look to packages. yes, unpredictability. All of these will be dramatic and all exceptional as the back at 2020 when considering 2021, essential ingredients in continuing to digital-first economy galloped toward and every company has its story to The second trend that stood out from connect to consumers to commerce its fulfillment and arguably saved tell. But the project was about the these responses is collaboration. Yes and each other in the new year. © 2020 PYMNTS.com All Rights Reserved ACI Worldwide INNOVATION WILL ACCELERATE THE DIGITAL ECONOMY IN 2021 DEBBIE GUERRA Executive vice president of merchant payments and payments intelligence solutions ooking ahead to 2021, I believe that secure digital transformation will remain a priority globally as individuals, businesses and economies begin to bounce back from the events that have so Lchallenged us all in 2020. A Year of Innovation in the Face of Adversity Digital and omnichannel consumer journeys have accelerated during 2020, as click and collect, buy online pick up in- store (BOPIS), and contactless payments and touch-free DEBBIE shopping have all seen an enormous boost this year. GUERRA© 2020 PYMNTS.com All Rights Reserved 6 © 2020 PYMNTS.com All Rights Reserved 7 Debbie Guerra ACI Worldwide Payments technology has been a respond to the pace of change and Challenges and Opportunities retailer, every organization has critical enabler for these in-demand embrace the new expectations and Ahead in 2021 evolving needs that omnicommerce services, and that will be the case as needs of their customers. solutions will need to rapidly Merchants are expected to deliver we see the digital shift continue into address. Even after the pandemic enhanced consumer experiences next year and beyond. As economic uncertainty still subsides, the digital acceleration we while balancing data protection persists, the reliance on new forms experienced in 2020 will not — it is and fraud prevention across all Increasingly, real-time payments of credit is also expanding globally, here to stay. channels. This is one of the biggest and the use of diverse new payment as “buy now, pay later” schemes, ongoing challenges they face, and methods are gaining traction — subscriptions and installment At ACI, we are excited about the merchants will need the right tools responding to both merchant and payment options are becoming rapidly evolving payments landscape in place to get that balance right. For consumer preferences, while at the increasingly mainstream. Consumers and the opportunities it affords. We example, universal omni-tokens are same time challenging the traditional have choice. They are making are optimistic that 2021 will deliver a powerful ally in this area, since they value chain that characterizes the their voices heard. They engage a safer work environment, healthier enable merchants to securely and payments ecosystem. with companies that listen. While families and new opportunities for confidently create unique customer generational differences in buying social engagement and commerce. payment experiences. Even eCommerce merchants behaviors clearly exist, those gaps We stand ready to embrace the new (who are, by nature, more digitally are narrowing. I hope and trust that normal, and to provide consumers, 2021 is likely to be the year when enabled) are increasingly adapting consumers will continue to use merchants, intermediaries and omnicommerce moves from hype their business models to evolve to their voices, and that merchants financial institutions with the to reality. Whether it’s a grocery new consumer demands. To remain will continue to listen, adapt and necessary solutions they need to store, drugstore, fuel company, relevant in the future, brick-and- innovate in an effort to become even respond to these challenges. convenience store, telco or a general mortar retailers in particular must more customer-centric. WHAT EXECUTIVES WISH FOR AMERICA AND THE WORLD IN 2021 © 2020 PYMNTS.com All Rights Reserved 8 © 2020 PYMNTS.com All Rights Reserved 9 Alacriti 2021: A BRIGHT FUTURE FOR PAYMENTS MANISH GURUKULA CEO common refrain from many people is: “I can’t wait for this year to end!” Looking back, there were plenty of reasons to impatiently wish for 2020 to end and rush into 2021.