Federal Reserve to Host Payments Innovation Conference Exploring AI, Crypto, and Stablecoins

US Fed to Host Payments Innovation Conference on Crypto and AI - Decrypt

The event adds to a packed Q4 policy calendar alongside other initiatives from the SEC, CFTC, BIS, and MAS. The Federal Reserve Board announced Wednesday it will host a conference on payments innovation on October 21, with a focus on emerging technologies in U.S. payment systems. The event will bring together regulators, academics, and industry participants to discuss ways to "innovate and improve the payments system," per the announcement. "Innovation has been a constant in payments to meet the changing needs of consumers and businesses," Federal Reserve Governor Christopher J. Waller said in a statement. The conference is positioned to bring together "ideas on how to improve the safety and efficiency of payments, and hearing from those helping to shape the future of payments," Governor Waller added. The event will feature panel discussions on the convergence of traditional and decentralized finance, new stablecoin use cases, the intersection of artificial intelligence and payments, and the tokenization of financial products and services. It will be livestreamed on the Federal Reserve's website, with further details to be announced. Decrypt has reached out to the central bank for further details. The inclusion of stablecoins and tokenization under one conference table connects with how the Fed and regulators are viewing digital assets through the same policy lens as traditional payments. Last month, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission advanced its own "Crypto Sprint" where it will assess custody, leveraged retail trading, and consumer protections. It is now in its public consultation phase, which runs through October 20. The Fed's October conference announcement follows a joint SEC and CFTC statement on Monday that sought to clarify how registered exchanges may list certain spot crypto products, including leveraged retail trades, under their Project Crypto and Crypto Sprint initiatives. The move, pitched as advancing regulatory clarity and market choice, comes just weeks before policy dialogues and pilots from the Monetary Authority of Singapore and the Bank for International Settlements.

Federal Reserve To Host October Conference On Convergence Of Traditional And Decentralized Finance - Mastercard (NYSE:MA), JPMorgan Chase (NYSE:JPM)

The U.S. Federal Reserve will host a payments innovation conference on Oct. 21, with a central focus on the convergence of traditional and decentralized finance. The agenda also includes discussions on stablecoins, artificial intelligence in payments, and the tokenization of financial products. What Happened: Governor Christopher J. Waller said the event reflects the Fed's ongoing attention to technological change in finance. "Innovation has been a constant in payments to meet the changing needs of consumers and businesses," Waller noted. "I look forward to examining the opportunities and challenges of new technologies, bringing together ideas on how to improve the safety and efficiency of payments, and hearing from those helping to shape the future of payments." The Federal Reserve has been active in modernizing U.S. payment infrastructure. In July 2023, it launched FedNow, a real-time payments system that enables instant 24/7 bank transfers, marking a major step in domestic payment modernization. The upcoming conference builds on that trajectory by explicitly including decentralized finance (DeFi) in its agenda, one of the first times the Fed has formally recognized DeFi's role in payments. Also Read: The 'Intelligent Investor' Is Dead, Expert Proclaims: 'Bitcoin Will Win' In Times Of 'Ideological Investors' Why It Matters: Stablecoins are also expected to be a focal point. In recent years, U.S. policymakers have debated legislation to regulate stablecoin issuers, with regulators warning that widely used tokens may need to comply with bank-like safeguards to mitigate systemic risks. Artificial intelligence has already seen broad application in payments and banking, particularly in fraud detection and transaction monitoring by firms such as Visa V, Mastercard MA, and major U.S. banks. The Fed's decision to spotlight AI underscores its view that the technology is no longer peripheral but central to the evolution of payments infrastructure. Tokenization will be another area of discussion. Pilot projects such as JPMorgan's JPM Onyx platform and Broadridge's blockchain-based repo platform have already demonstrated the potential of tokenized assets in real-world financial markets, moving billions of dollars in transactions. By including tokenization, the Fed is aligning its discussions with ongoing developments in both private and public markets. The conference will be livestreamed on the Federal Reserve's website, with further details on participants and panels to be released in the coming weeks. Read Next: Bitcoin, Ethereum Stall Ahead Of Crucial Labor Market Data: Just A Bull Run Breather? Image: Shutterstock JPMJPMorgan Chase & Co$297.98-0.57%Stock Score Locked: Want to See it? Benzinga Rankings give you vital metrics on any stock - anytime. Reveal Full ScoreEdge RankingsMomentum78.29Growth70.80Quality22.89ValueN/APrice TrendShortMediumLongOverviewMAMastercard Inc$590.83-0.18%VVisa Inc$347.99-0.60%Market News and Data brought to you by Benzinga APIs

Breaking: Federal Reserve to Host 'Payments Innovation' Conference on Stablecoins

Fed Governors Michelle Bowman and Chris Waller have signaled openness to stablecoins and crypto in general. In a massive development, the Federal Reserve has announced its Payments Innovation Conference, which will take place next month. The conference will feature discussions on stablecoins, tokenization, and artificial intelligence (AI). Federal Reserve To Host Payments Innovation Conference Next Month In a press release, the Fed Board announced that it will host a conference on payments innovation on October 21. The release noted that the event will bring together a range of interested parties to discuss how to further innovate and improve the payments system. Notably, this move comes after the Federal Reserve discussed stablecoins as one that could boost U.S. payment efficiency at the last FOMC meeting. Commenting on the upcoming conference, Fed Governor Chris Waller said that innovation has been a constant in payments to meet the changing needs of consumers and businesses. Walller further remarked that he looks forward to examining the opportunities and challenges of new technologies, bringing together ideas on how to improve the safety and efficiency of payments as they hear from those helping shape the future of payments. The Federal Reserve Payments Innovation conference will feature panel discussions on several aspects, including the "convergence of traditional and decentralized finance, emerging stablecoin use cases and business models, the intersection of artificial intelligence and payments, and the tokenization of financial products and services." Interestingly, Fed Governor Michelle Bowman also recently remarked that change is coming. This came as she called for the reception of new technology trends, including digital assets. She also revealed that bank regulators were already working on creating a framework for digital assets and the adoption of blockchain within the banking system.

Fed Conference to Explore AI and Crypto-Centric Payment Innovations | PYMNTS.com

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. The conference, scheduled for Oct. 21, will explore several aspects of payments innovation, including the intersection of traditional and decentralized finance and the convergence of artificial intelligence (AI) and payments, the central bank announced Wednesday (Sept. 3). "Innovation has been a constant in payments to meet the changing needs of consumers and businesses," Fed Governor Christopher Waller said in a news release, adding that he hopes the conference would include input from companies that want to help shape the future of payments. Other topics to be covered include emerging stablecoin use cases and business models and the tokenization of financial products and services. PYMNTS has written extensively on the convergence of AI, crypto and stablecoins. For example, we spoke in June with Coupa Product Strategy and Management Senior Vice President Rajiv Ramachandran about the embrace of agentic AI among B2B firms. "I think we're standing at the edge of a major transformation," Ramachandran said during a conversation for the June "What's Next in Payments: Secret Agents" series. "Agentic AI is not just a technological trend -- it's a rethinking of how decision-making, risk and value creation happen inside financial workflows." Although the term "agentic AI" might sound futuristic or like something out of a Cold War spy thriller, Ramachandran told PYMNTS he views it as a pragmatic solution to an old business imperative, that of doing more, faster and more securely, with reduced human overhead. "It's not just about automation; it's about delegation," he said. And in the aftermath of the GENIUS Act's passage, PYMNTS wrote that stablecoins could change how global companies access, store and move dollars, particularly in places where trust is lacking and banking is broken. Currency.com Chief Executive Konstantin Anissimov told PYMNTS in an interview in May that there has been "a big shift in terms of adoption of stablecoin payments that is being driven by uncertainty in geopolitics." "I am personally seeing a big increase of small to medium enterprises utilizing stablecoin payments because banking rails are harder and harder to use," Anissimov said. The report uses the example of a mid-size exporter in the Philippines purchasing electronics components from Taiwan and selling to distributors in Kenya, a deal that involves three currencies, two central banks and at least four intermediaries. "Enter stablecoins," PYMNTS wrote. "Instead of routing through correspondent banks or relying on volatile forex pairs, companies can denominate invoices in stablecoins, settle within hours and avoid the friction of legacy payment rails."