In a September 2020 paper, the Atlanta Fed looks at how the growth of digital payments benefits many businesses and consumers but can also shut out many households who are among the least economically mobile and resilient. This growth has led to an increasing number of businesses going cashless or adopting restrictive payment acceptance processes, practices that effectively exclude cash-based consumers, a population already marginally attached to the economy.
Work to increase financial inclusion have generally focused on bringing people without bank accounts or with limited access to financial services into the traditional financial system. The Atlanta Fed paper points out that the share of consumers who lack credit or debit cards is actually larger than the share of those who are unbanked, so proposes that focusing efforts on ensuring equitable access to new, more convenient payments services—without discouraging innovation—can increase financial inclusion.
What are the most important efforts we should pursue to ensure inclusion of this disconnected population? To identify those efforts and do the work, the Atlanta Fed has formed a special multidisciplinary committee made up of experts in the fields of payments and financial inclusion. View the charter of the Special Committee on Payments Inclusion.
The Special Committee on Payments Inclusion
The committee, together with the Atlanta Fed, aims to play a pivotal role in supporting safe and inclusive payments innovation that advances economic mobility and resilience in the Sixth District and beyond. The committee has worked to advance ubiquitous access to safe, efficient, and inclusive payments for all.
To accomplish its goals, the committee commissioned its members to conduct research on emerging issues in payments inclusion, collect and analyze data to better understand trends in the evolving payments industry, and make recommendations to the industry or policymakers based on research findings. The committee has published the results of that research in its report, “Promoting Payments Inclusion in a Digital Payments Era.”
The committee has been active for two years. Committee members and the Atlanta Fed will determine if there is additional work to pursue and may decide to extend the committee's work.
Committee Members
- David Benck, senior vice president and general counsel, Hibbett Sports
- Sudheer Chava, Alton M. Costley chair and professor of finance, Georgia Institute of Technology
- Denise Dias, digital finance policy, regulation and supervision expert, CGAP-The World Bank-Toronto Centre
- Andrea Donkor, vice president, regulatory relations, PayPal
- Timothy Flacke, cofounder and executive director, Commonwealth
- John Garratt, executive vice president and chief financial officer, Dollar General
- Mark Pearce, director of the Division of Depositor and Consumer Protection, Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation
- Bruce Renard, executive director, The National ATM Council Inc.
- Courtney Robinson, head of financial inclusion and public policy development, Square Inc.
- Bob Skiba, executive vice president, InComm Payments
- John M. Turner Jr., chief executive officer and president, Regions Bank
- Silvanus J. Udoka, dean of the School of Business Administration, Clark Atlanta University
- Robert Ward, senior vice president, Global Payments
- Brian K. Williams, president, First Farmers and Merchants Bank in Columbia, Tennessee
The Atlanta Fed plays several key roles in the payments industry, including operator, supervisor, and researcher. Our district is also a major hub for domestic payments—approximately 70 percent of U.S. payments flow through Atlanta, earning the metro area the nickname of "Transaction Alley."
Roles the Atlanta Fed plays in payments include:
- Operator. Federal Reserve Financial Services is an integrated organization within the Federal Reserve that is responsible for managing critical payment and securities services that foster the accessibility, integrity and efficiency of the US economy.
- Supervisor. In addition to conducting exams of bank holding companies and domestic and international banks, we supervise technology service providers.
- Convener and researcher. We are exploring payments systems design and risks in technological innovation and bringing people together to share, educate, and collaborate.
The Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta is committed to sharing knowledge and encourages an open dialogue through a variety of channels. Channels can include conferences, forums, webinars, and podcasts. We also write research papers and articles.
Audiences that we frequently engage with are:
- Fintechs and payments providers
- Depository and financial Institutions
- Third-party processors and technology service providers
- Consumers
- Trade groups
- Regulators
- Local and state government agencies
- Universities
Atlanta Fed events are typically open to these audiences. We will post event details here and on the Atlanta Fed News and Events page.
Atlanta Fed hosts Payments Inclusion Forum
In August 2024, the Bank's Special Committee on Payments Inclusion, a multidisciplinary team of payments and financial inclusion experts, hosted the Payments Inclusion Forum with an emphasis on innovating for inclusion. The event featured a discussion with Atlanta Fed president and CEO Raphael Bostic and Sunayna Tuteja, chief innovation officer for the Federal Reserve System. Watch the video.
If you are interested in discussing topics on payments inclusion, please complete the form and briefly describe your request.
We look forward to hearing from you.