Nacha’s Payments Innovation Alliance (PIA) is a diverse organization seeking to grow and advance payments innovation to meet the needs of the ever-evolving payments industry. Throughout the year Alliance members have the opportunity to attend member meetings to network and collaborate with other financial industry leaders and to discuss the latest trends and payment innovations.
This year’s winter meeting will take place from February 15-17, 2023, in Tempe, AZ, and promises to be a dynamic event full of engaging and insightful discussions.
What Will We Learn?
With an agenda full of topics across the payments industry, the iCG team looks forward to learning about the latest trends and innovations. The PIA’s Meeting agenda holds sessions on the Metaverse, DeFi, and Web3, the FedNow Pilot Program, Open Banking, the ABCs of NFTs, the current landscape of cannabis, and so much more.
A Dive into the Dark Web
One area that particularly piques our interest is cybersecurity and cyberattacks within the evolving fraud landscape. As digital and online payments continue to become more popular, so does the risk of cyberattack attempts and fraudulent activities. It is more crucial than ever to understand and utilize fraud prevention technologies. The Nacha PIA Meeting will hold a unique session focusing on cyberattacks with a live hacking demonstration, taking us into the mind of a cybercriminal.
Taking a Rising Industry to Higher Ground
A trending topic of discussion is that of cannabis. The session focusing on the current landscape of cannabis, including state expansion, regulation, and innovation in banking/payments, will provide valuable insight into a rising industry and why your organization shouldn’t wait to act. The recent surge of states passing legislation for legalized cannabis has resulted in one of the most rapid and widespread demands. With this demand comes the need for transparent and trustworthy payment options.
Are NFTs for Me?
By now, we have all heard the term “NFT,” but what is it? How does it work? Why does this matter to the payments industry? NFTs, or Non-Fungible Tokens, are created using the same type of programming used for cryptocurrencies and allow companies to store data – protecting it from loss or corruption. With a session dedicated to the ABCs of NFTs, attendees will explore how these unique cryptographic tokens translate to real-world goods and how NFTs impact the payments industry and the future of our business.
Open Banking: Today and Tomorrow
Today, the combination of instant payments, APIs, and tools like request-for-pay has brought the bank account and open banking to heights like never before. The session focusing on recent developments in open banking in the U.S., including how it compares to other markets, the benefits for consumers, businesses, and financial institutions, and the challenges facing open banking, will bring great insight into the future and further potential of this practice. There will also be discussions surrounding the technological issues and creation of business cases, in addition to the potential role that regulation could have in open banking and the payments space moving forward.
Along with the educational sessions, there will be chances for networking and building relationships with like-minded professionals and colleagues. Events like the welcome reception, a guided mountain hike, hot breakfast buffet, and after-hours activities are designed to provide a relaxed and enjoyable atmosphere that promotes conversation and collaboration with fellow attendees.
Nacha’s Alliance membership meeting operates under the Chatham House Rule, which fosters candid discussions without personal opinions being attributed to individuals or their employers. This enables attendees to engage in meaningful conversations, exchange ideas, and gain valuable insights.
The iCG team looks forward to a productive, educational, and all-around fun event that will give attendees the tools and information needed to input the latest trends and innovations to meet the needs of the financial and payments industry.
Connect with Jason Estes and Nikki Estes from the iCG team at the conference to learn more about iCheckGateway.com.
