By Funto Omojola, NerdWallet Mobile wallets that allow you to pay using your phone have been around for well more than a decade, and over those years they’ve grown in popularity, becoming a key part of consumers’ credit card usage. According to a “state of credit card report” for 2025 from credit bureau Experian, 53% of Americans in a survey say they use digital wallets more frequently than traditional payment methods. To further incentivize mobile wallet usage, some credit card issuers offer bonus rewards when you elect to pay that way. But those incentives can go beyond just higher reward rates. In fact, mobile wallets in some ways are becoming an essential part of activating and holding a credit card. For example, they can offer immediate access to your credit line, and they can be easier and safer than paying with a physical card. From a rewards perspective, it can make a lot of sense to reach for your phone now instead of your physical card. The Apple Card offers its highest reward rates when you use it through the Apple Pay mobile wallet. Same goes for the PayPal Cashback Mastercard® when you use it to make purchases via the PayPal digital wallet. The Kroger grocery store giant has a co-branded credit card that earns the most when you pay using an eligible digital wallet, and some major credit cards with quarterly rotating bonus categories have a history of incentivizing digital wallet use. But again, these days it’s not just about the rewards. Mobile wallets like Apple Pay, Samsung Pay and PayPal can offer immediate access to your credit line while you wait for your physical card to arrive after approval. Indeed, most major issuers including Bank of America®, Capital One and Chase now offer instant virtual credit card numbers for eligible cards that can be used upon approval by adding them to a digital wallet. Additionally, many co-branded credit cards — those offered in partnership with another brand — commonly offer instant card access and can be used immediately on in-brand purchases. Credit cards typically take seven to 10 days to arrive after approval, so instant access to your credit line can be particularly useful if you need to make an urgent or unexpected purchase. Plus, they allow you to start spending toward a card’s sign-up bonus right away. As issuers push toward mobile payments, a growing number of merchants and businesses are similarly adopting the payment method. The percentage of U.S. businesses that used digital wallets increased to 62% in 2023, compared to 47% the previous year, according to a 2023 survey commissioned by the Federal Reserve Financial Services. Related Articles Business | Event promoters, hotels and lodging sites soon will have to disclose extra fees up front Business | Should you donate your points and miles to charity? Business | Skip the holiday debt by planning before you spend Business | 5 ways to tell if you’re on track for retirement — and 5 things to do if you need to catch up, according to experts Business | The White House is cracking down on overdraft fees Wider acceptance is potentially good news for the average American, who according to Experian has about four credit cards. While that won’t necessarily weigh down your wallet, it can be hard to manage multiple cards and rewards categories at once. Mobile wallets offer a more efficient way to store and organize all of your workhorse cards, while not having to carry around ones that you don’t use often. They can also help you more easily monitor your spending and rewards, and some even track your orders’ status and arrival time. Plus, paying with a digital wallet offers added security. That’s because it uses technology called tokenization when you pay, which masks your real credit card number and instead sends an encrypted “token” that’s unique to each payment. This is unlike swiping or dipping a physical card, during which your credit card number is more directly accessible. And again, because a mobile wallet doesn’t require you to have your physical cards present, there’s less chance of one falling out of your pocket or purse. More From NerdWallet Funto Omojola writes for NerdWallet. Email: fomojola@nerdwallet.com. The article Activating Your Credit Card? Don’t Skip the Mobile Wallet Step originally appeared on NerdWallet .
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Millions displaced by global conflicts. Communities reeling from natural disasters. Lives upended because of health care inequalities. In the middle of these crises are established nonprofits, everyday individuals and mutual aid groups — all seeking your dollars to make a difference. With no shortage of worthy causes and the rise of new giving technologies, how should you donate? The choices can be immobilizing. Many people value conventional charities but others — Gen Z and millennials, as well as the unmarried and less religious, according to 2021 research by the Indiana University Lilly Family School of Philanthropy — like to crowdfund by pooling donations online for folks in dire circumstances. “It’s really: what is the right type of support that either an organization or a community or an individual needs?” said Bloomerang Chief Customer Officer Todd Baylis, who co-founded the platform Qgiv to help nonprofits fundraise online. “And being able to tailor that to the individual giver.” Here are some questions worth considering. It might come down to whether you want to make a big difference for one person or help seed large-scale change. Tiltify is a technology platform that helps nonprofits and individual crowdfunders raise money. If donors want to ensure food gets to communities recovering from disasters, Tiltify CEO Michael Wasserman says a nonprofit contribution is probably best, as established organizations already have distribution pipelines and expertise. If you want to ensure a particular person can take care of themselves, he said, a direct donation to a crowdfunding campaign might make more sense than sending money “through a charitable funnel.” You could do both at once, according to one nonprofit that delivers cash transfers. GiveDirectly reports sending more than $860 million to 1.6 million people across three continents. Senior Program Manager Richard Nkurunziza says the idea initially was met with fears of misuse, but GiveDirectly finds that cash donations are a dignified way to empower people to invest in their unique needs. In Rwandan villages, he said, recipients spent donations on household renovations, new businesses and youth education — all of which benefit their entire community. “There’s a bit of agency,” he said. “It gives an opportunity for the recipient to make a decision on how they use the funds for themselves.” Crowdfunding could be considered “more democratic,” according to Claire van Teunenbroek, a University of Twente professor specializing in online giving behavior. Donors have more control over their gifts’ usage when they choose who benefits. The disadvantage, she said, is that people with the greatest needs aren’t always the ones with the most success. Humans are prone to supporting “easily sellable” projects with highly emotional appeals, and studies showed racial disparities in crowdfunding. The most popular reason donors told Bloomerang they stopped giving was because they did not trust contributions were used wisely, according to the company’s Generational Giving Report. The second most common response was that donors no longer felt connected to the nonprofit. The answers underscore the need for recipients to actively prove their trustworthiness. Tax-exempt nonprofits must submit annual financial disclosures to the Internal Revenue Service that include publicly available information, including executives’ salaries. Watchdogs, such as Charity Navigator, compile lists of verified nonprofits and assess their work. Crowdfunding is much more susceptible to fraud. The online sites are relatively unregulated, leaving the responsibility for protection up to donors and the platforms themselves. In GoFundMe’s case, donations can be refunded up to one year after they are made. The company advises that organizers identify themselves and their beneficiaries, and specify their plans for spending contributions. Online users mistakenly associate high donation numbers with credibility, van Teunenbroek said. She said risk is better mitigated by making sure the project’s description is detailed. “For a donor, if you prefer more certainty, then traditional nonprofits are probably better because they have an established reputation,” she said. ALSAC CEO Rick Shadyac said his charity works hard to make donors feel confident that their money is supporting the mission of St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital: improving pediatric cancer survival rates worldwide by covering the costs of care and researching treatments. He urges people to give regardless of the medium and to always look for reputable causes. Bonafide charities, he said, bring “greater degrees of confidence” while crowdfunding requires more “due diligence.” Still, he sees room for both. ALSAC gets nearly one-quarter of its annual revenue during the last two months of the calendar, Shadyac said, the time of year designated “Giving Season.” The uptick could stem from the spirit of generosity around the holidays, he added. A 2023 study found that people in good moods are more likely to make a charitable donation. They also might be making year-end tax plans. “Not-for-profits give them the opportunity to address some things that are important to them while also getting a tax deduction,” Shadyac said. Crowdfunding donations to individual campaigns, however, cannot be written off on your taxes. Mutual aid refers to reciprocal support networks of neighbors who meet each other’s most pressing needs when existing systems fail. Participants often describe the act as “solidarity, not charity.” These groups often solicit cash contributions through online payment processors like Venmo, Cash App, PayPal or Zelle. Anyone can scan QR codes, which are usually shared on social media, to donate. The money goes straight to those impacted or helps purchase supplies for shared community resources. Transparency might come in the form of a receipt shared by organizers. Tamara Kneese joined mutual aid efforts during the COVID-19 pandemic to take care of her neighbors in Oakland. Kneese, a director at the nonprofit research institute Data & Society, said these groups tend to start as immediate responses to crises hurting disadvantaged communities. The idea, she added, is “state abandonment cannot be addressed by charitable giving alone.” “It is not just a sense of charity, like you make a donation and you’re done,” she said. “There is more of a relationship involved and it is not just transactional.” Get local news delivered to your inbox!
CHENNAI: Amidst severe criticism from various political parties over his whiplash agitation, Tamil Nadu BJP chief K Annamalai on Saturday said his action should be likened to that of a "brother's primal anger" over the sexual assault of his sister. His action should not be viewed as political but ought to be seen as an elder brother's outburst over the "system failure" in the state, Annamalai said a day after he staged a unique whiplash agitation of flogging himself to condemn the ruling DMK and the state police over the handling of the case of sexual assault on a Chennai college student. "Don't see me as a political party leader but see me as the affected girl's elder brother. It's (inflicting whiplash on himself) like primal anger of a brother because the system has failed," Annamalai told reporters at the airport here when sought for his reaction. "Has the police been impartial in handling the case? No. There was no chance for the FIR to get leaked. How did it get leaked?" the BJP president asked. He lashed himself several times with a whip in front of his house in Coimbatore demanding justice for the Anna University student who was sexually assaulted on Christmas Eve. Also Read: TN BJP chief Annamalai whips himself to condemn Anna University sexual assault The police had arrested the suspect in the case. Several political parties including the ruling DMK had mocked Annamalai for the agitation which was also to dislodge the DMK government. He had vowed not to wear sandals till the DMK was dethroned and had even begun a 48-day ritual for a pilgrimage to Murugan temples. Also, he justified his stance on the issue. He said the "system has deteriorated" in the state. Former Governor Dr Tamilisai Soundararajan and BJP members were arrested when they staged a protest demanding justice for the affected girl student. "So I was constrained to take up this agitation. I have taken up the issue with a religious zeal," Annamalai said.A young TikToker learning to live with long COVID educates about chronic illness
AUSTIN, Texas , Dec. 2, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Subsplash , the industry leader in engagement technology for churches, announced today its acquisition of Pulpit AI , the artificial intelligence company for pastors and churches. "At Subsplash, we're committed to supporting church communities by making it easier to share the truth of Jesus," said Tim Turner , CEO of Subsplash. "Pulpit AI allows us to provide hundreds of thousands of forward-looking church leaders with tools that multiply their content creation efforts—helping deepen discipleship within their communities!" This acquisition marks an exciting step forward in Subsplash's mission of equipping every church to engage more people through technology by transforming sermons into dynamic, discoverable content that reaches people every day of the week—anywhere, anytime. Pastors and church leaders can leverage the Subsplash Platform—mobile apps, online giving, live streaming, websites, media delivery, events management, communication tools, and more—now paired with the power of AI making it simple to upload sermons and automatically create a suite of content—from video clips for social media to study guides for small groups, sermon recaps, weekly newsletters, and more. "The Church should be at the forefront of innovation and creativity," said Turner. "We can't wait to see how this acquisition helps amplify the gospel message and, by the grace of Jesus, we'll never stop innovating for His Church." With Subsplash & Pulpit AI's advanced tools, pastors can save valuable time while broadening the reach and impact of their messages. By enabling church leaders to repurpose their sermons quickly and effectively, Subsplash aims to enhance engagement with each sermon created, connecting congregations with meaningful content throughout the week. About Subsplash Subsplash is the industry leader in Fintech and mobile SaaS with an award-winning digital engagement platform used by over 20,000 leading churches and ministries around the world. Subsplash is passionate about helping mission-minded organizations engage their audiences through centralized, easy-to-manage systems. As the creators of the Ultimate Engagement PlatformTM, they're dedicated to delivering delight to millions of people through custom mobile apps, websites, live streaming, media hosting delivery, online giving, events management, communication tools, and more. View original content to download multimedia: https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/subsplash-acquires-pulpit-ai-an-innovative-platform-leveraging-ai-to-help-streamline-content-creation--boost-sermon-engagement-for-churches-302320167.html SOURCE SubsplashS&P/TSX composite index gains more than 350 points, U.S. stock markets also rise