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Articles by Keith Ash
Why Scale Is Fueling More Banking M&A Deals Than Survival
U.S. banking consolidation was strong in 2025, with a 45% surge and 181 bank deals announced. In the first six months of 2026, 85 banking deals were announced, including Spain’s Banco Santander $12.2 billion proposal in March to buy the $86 billion Stamford, Connecticut-based Webster Financial Corp. While activity in 2026 is slower than 2025 so far, many industry observers believe a significant number of transactions are close to being announced.
Future of Credit Cards Under Threat
While merchants claim the Credit Card Competition Act will save consumers money, past experience shows this is unlikely. by Keith Ash, SRM Sens. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.)t, Peter Welch (D-Vt.), Roger Marshall (R-Kan.), and J.D. Vance (R-Ohio) have re-introduced the bipartisan Credit Card Competition Act of 2023 (CCCA). Companion legislation was introduced in the House by Reps. by Lance Gooden (R-Texas) and Zoe Lofgren (D-Calif.).
DAKOTA CREDIT UNION ASSOCIATION
A summary of Fed final guidance – card issuers need to pay attention to this and should actively engage their government relations areas before it is too late.
Reg II 2.0 Revealed: A Summary of the Fed’s Final Guidance
Guest editorial by Myron Schwarcz, Chief Product Officer, and Keith Ash, Senior Vice President, at Strategic Resource Management It has been almost a year and a half since the Fed had requested public comment on a “non-substantive” proposed amendment to Regulation II that would 1.) specify that the prohibition on network exclusivity applies to card-not-present debit card transactions, 2.) clarify the responsibility of the issuer to enable at least two unaffiliated networks to comply with the...
Durbin Bill Aims to Fundamentally Change the Credit Market, Causing Disaster for Industry
Guest editorial by Myron Schwarcz, Chief Product Officer, and Keith Ash, Senior Vice President, at Strategic Resource Management Ever since the Durbin Amendment upended the debit card industry in 2010, insiders have speculated that Sen. Richard Durbin (D-Ill.) would eventually pursue similar changes to the credit card industry. Sen. Durbin made it known during a May 2022 Senate Judiciary Committee meeting that credit card reform was in his crosshairs.
Durbin Bill Aims to Fundamentally Change the Credit Market
Since upending the debit card industry in 2010, interchange is now targeting credit cards and that could prove to be a disaster for the industry. by Myron Schwarcz and Keith Ash, Strategic Resource Management (SRM) Ever since the Durbin Amendment upended the debit card industry in 2010, insiders have speculated that Sen. Richard Durbin (D-Ill.) would eventually pursue similar changes to the credit card industry. Sen.
Why Buy Now, Pay Later and Cryptocurrency Must Be in the Payments Playbook
Published : 3 years ago, on 12/04/2022 By Keith Ash, SVP of SRM (Strategic Resource Management) Consumer payment behaviors are in flux, in no small part due to a variety of emerging options. Financial institutions need to recognize these newfound preferences to avoid the risk of customer attrition.
Durbin 2.0 Part II: Who Weighed In and What They Said
As discussed in a previous blog, the Federal Reserve began seeking comments on proposed changes to Reg II of the Durbin Amendment in May. At that time, the Fed said that it felt the changes would be non-substantial and would not include more compliance obligations. Currently, the Fed bars issuers from restricting the number of unaffiliated networks for debit card transactions to fewer than two, including one signature network and one PIN network.
How the pandemic has forever changed payments
Since the coronavirus began its spread through the US in March, experts and government officials have been constantly developing and updating guidelines to deter the spread of the virus, requiring Americans to drastically change their everyday behavior. Quickly, consumers heeded the risks associated with touching cash and surfaces such as payment terminals, and a very strong trend emerged at the checkout counter: consumers want to tap to pay, now more than ever.
Durbin 2.0 - Creating Clarity or Confusion?
Despite the Fed’s stated desire for a basic clarification of Durbin’s requirements, the wheels are in motion for regulatory change. Card issuers, don’t blink! by Myron Schwarcz and Keith Ash, Strategic Resource Management (SRM) Rumor is that a further tightening of the Durbin Amendment is on the near-term horizon for card issuers. The most concrete evidence is the Fed’s May request-for-comment on regulations for debit routing of online transactions.
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