Nuvei points out 15 Payment trends that will redefine how commerce works in 2026

The payments industry has definitely gone from being just an operational infrastructure to becoming one of the key strategic drivers of global trade. This is the main conclusion of the “ panorama“15 Payment trends that will redefine how commerce works in 2026”, elaborated from the vision of the global leaders of Nuvei. According to executives of Nuvei, 2026 marks a clear turning point for the sector. Advances in artificial intelligence, the consolidation of real-time payments, regulatory evolution and profound changes in consumer behavior are leading companies to rethink the role of payments in their technological, financial and growth strategies.What was previously treated as a tactical theme becomes structural. “The debate is no longer about a specific means of payment and has become about how to design flexible, resilient, intelligent environments with a high level of financial control”, they evaluate.

Following is a compilation of the 15 Trends expected to shape the payments industry and global retail in 2026, Building on the practical experience of Nuvei leaders in the areas of AI, product, risk, treasury, partnerships, tourism, payment methods and global strategy.

Trend 1: Agent-mediated trade becomes reality

In 2026, the call agentic digital agents begin to influence product discovery, comparison of offers and the beginning of transactions, requiring companies to rethink product structure, price transparency and checkout journeys to serve not only consumers, but also agents acting on their behalf. “2026 is the year that agent-mediated commerce becomes real. Consumer agents will advance faster than the rest of the ecosystem, and those who adapt early will have a clear” advantage, affirms Hilla Peled, AI SVP and Data Science

Trend 2: Checkout becomes a revenue system

Each decision at checkout & checkout & authentication or payment options & ODS has a direct impact on conversion and customer value over time. In 2026, the checkout is no longer a static page and starts to operate as a live system, which adapts in real time to customer behavior, device context, risk signals and payment media performance. “The performance of the checkout accumulates quickly. Who treats it as a system, and not as a screen, comes out ahead", it says Damien Cramer, SVP and Global Head of Travel

Trend 3: Network-led checkout goes from experiment to expectation

Experiences like Paze and Konek gradually move from novelty status to expected standard.Consumer familiarity with identity, tokenization, and authentication enabled by networks creates a level of trust at the time of payment. “Frictionless payments continue to lead the consumer experience and drive scale for merchantsstates Steve Vincent, SVP and Head of Commercial at Nuvei in North America.

Trend 4: Orchestration becomes merchant-led requirement

For large retailers, payment orchestration is no longer differential and becomes a minimum requirement. Multi-acquirer routing, for example, smart retries and optimization of approvals become basic expectations. “Marketers expect their payment partners to actively improve results. Just processing transactions is no longer enough”, highlights Raphael Tetro, SVP of Strategic Accounts.

Trend 5: Resilience and financial visibility gain priority

In the travel industry, payment strategies evolve to ensure operational resilience and financial control.Distributed environments increase flexibility, but make reconciliation, transparency and visibility strategic requirements. “At scale, payment performance matters, but financial visibility and trust matter as much as”, affirms Jacqueline Ulrich, SVP and Head of Travel Payments in Europe.

Trend 6: B2B payments enter an era of cost control

As B2B payments digitize, cost takes center stage. Cards bring speed and automation, but also higher costs.In 2026, companies strategically combine cards and integrated bank transfers & ACH and SEPA 'AS ACH and SEPA 'AS seeking economic and operational efficiency. “In B2B payments, 2026 is about having the right tools to maximize both the economic and operational benefits of digital payments.More data, compliant collections and integrated bank transfers give businesses real levers to manage costs without sacrificing efficiency.states Murray Sharp, SVP B2B Payments.

Trend 7: Card savings give merchants back power

The expectation of regulatory agreements involving Visa and Mastercard in the US, expected by the end of 2026, should increase the flexibility of merchants in managing acceptance costs, with real-time decisions about accepting, directing or overcharging transactions. “This is selective acceptance of cards at scale. Acquirers who prepare early will lead”, evaluates Christine Scappa, General Manager of Nubei North America.

Trend 8: Open Banking and real-time payments become operational

Sectors that require speed and irrevocability, such as games, are now adopting more widely bank transfers and Request to Pay, reducing costs, fraud and improving cash flow. “Payments should disappear at the bottom of the shopping experience.Speed and certainty make this possiblestates Warren Tristram, SVP, Head of iGaming.

Trend 9: Neobanks expose limitations of the traditional card model

Neobanks are leveraging real-time payment infrastructures and alternative methods to challenge the traditional card economy.Built on modern infrastructure and free of legacy systems, they are able to more aggressively experiment with how money moves and how value is delivered to consumers. “Newbanks are proving that cheaper infrastructure, combined with strong brands, can change the payment behavior”, he said, Guillaume Conteville, CMO.

Trend 10: Stablecoins redefine capital strategy and balance sheet intelligence

Stablecoins are no longer just payment infrastructure and become part of the capital strategy of companies, allowing dynamic liquidity management, faster settlement and financial predictability. “Stablecoins are changing how companies think about liquidity.They are not just a faster way to move money.They are a smarter way to”, Bryce Jurss, VP, Digital Assets.

Trend 11: Local payment methods remain decisive for global growth

Despite the scale of global platforms, payments remain deeply local.Consumers continue to rely on familiar methods such as bank transfers, digital wallets and regional schemes and this trust has a direct impact on conversion and brand credibility perception.In 2026, the challenge for companies is no longer just adding local methods and becomes to choose the most relevant for each market and journey. Few options limit reach, too many options generate fatigue, frustration and abandonment at checkout. “Global brands win when they manage to look local at the time of the” payment”, Adina Pop, SVP, Global Payment Methods.

Trend 12: Payment data evolves into business intelligence

Payment data is no longer just historical records and is now consolidated as one of the most accurate sources of business intelligence. By 2026, near-real-time transactional information will guide strategic decisions related to pricing, personalization, authorization performance, fraud prevention and geographic expansion.More mature companies are moving from retrospective analytics to predictive insights, using payment data to understand where there is friction, loss of margin or growth opportunities. “Payment data shows how commerce actually works, not how we imagine it to work”, Advait Sinha, SVP, Product Management.

Trend 13: New European methods face the test of real adoption

Solutions like Wero and Revolut Pay gain visibility, but they need to prove concrete impact on conversion, cost and checkout experience to scale sustainably. “The payment graveyard is full of big names. Adoption is always the real” test, Steffan Jones, SVP, Customer Experience.

Trend 14: Stablecoins consolidate as treasury operating layer

Global companies are using stablecoins to centralize liquidity, move resources between countries, and explore new forms of financial efficiency, reducing reliance on traditional banking structures.“Stablecoins are evolving into an operational layer of treasury. They enable global companies to centralize liquidity, move funds faster across borders, and unlock efficiency without relinquishing control.”, Damon Burk, Senior Director, Digital Assets.

Trend 15: Compliance becomes a competitive advantage

Instead of slowing growth, compliance is seen as an operational differentiator, enabling faster expansion, agile onboarding and greater regulatory trust“Compliance works best when it is integrated into the operation, not as a barrier at the end of the process.In 2026, this integration becomes a true competitive advantagestates Noam Grinberg, Director of Risk.

Payments as an enabling layer of modern commerce

The bottom line is that by 2026, the big transformation is not in a single payment medium, but in how companies design strategies that balance flexibility, resilience, intelligence and control. As ecosystems become more complex, the role of payment providers evolves to enable merchant-led architectures integrated into broader ecosystems and oriented towards long-term value creation.

At the end of the day, the best payment experiences are those that the consumer hardly perceives, but on which business depends completely. Follow here the Overview of payment trends: https://www.nuvei.com/br/postagens/15-payment-trends-that-will-redefine-how-commerce-works-in-2026