Data released Tuesday by freight audit and payment provider U.S. Bank showed a trucking industry continuing to battle cyclical and structural headwinds. The U.S. freight market continued its downward trend in the fourth quarter of 2024. According to the latest U.S. Bank Freight Payment Index, shipment volumes fell 4.7% from the previous quarter, marking the 10th consecutive quarterly decline

Digital banking platform Candescent has named a new chief product officer.Gareth Gaston, described by Candescent as an “industry powerhouse,” is joining the firm after more than a decade at U.S. Bank, the company announced Tuesday (Feb. 4).“Candescent is the market leader in digital-first banking, empowering banks and credit unions across the country to deliver innovative, differentiated digital experiences, and I’m excited to be a part of this dynamic team,” Gaston said in a news release.“The strategic use of technology has never been so critical to the success of financial institutions, and I’m eager to help drive Candescent’s continued momentum and product evolution as we deliver the solutions banks and credit unions need to delight customers and compete effectively,” Gaston added.Gaston’s most recent position with U.S. Bank was chief product officer for enterprise platforms. During his time with the bank, he led the redesign of its mobile app, established and scaled enterprise digital platforms encompassing business lines such as money movement, account opening and open banking.In addition, Gaston played a key role in the formation, launch and scaling of industry joint ventures Zelle and Akoya, the release said.“Gareth has a proven track record of success when it comes to digital banking product excellence, having designed and delivered award-winning customer experiences across a broad platform of solutions,” said Brendan Tansill, CEO of Candescent.“He has already hit the ground running, and I’m confident that his leadership will accelerate our pace of innovation in delivering robust, digital-first technology that enables our banks and credit unions to differentiate, increase wallet share and grow,” Tansill added.PYMNTS spoke last fall with Doug Brown, Gaston’s predecessor, for an interview in the “What’s Next in Payments” series, exploring the rise of embedded finance.He said that when done correctly, embedded finance alleviates a pain point for merchants as well as issuers: cart abandonment.“That’s a merchant problem, but it’s also a banker’s problem,” he said. “It’s a lost transaction.”Embedded finance solutions help guide end users toward affordable, personalized payment options that are convenient enough to incentivize the sale to be made, he said.“You’re embedding the capabilities out to where the customer is and when they want to use it,” said Brown, so “there’s a full cycle of win-wins across the board.”

It’s a new year, and that means it’s a new quarter. One that could signal a new era of digital transformation for B2B payments. Across earnings calls and investor discussions, executives from major players in financial services and FinTech consistently pointed to a rising appetite for efficiency in B2B transactions. The themes emerging from these conversations reflect a strategic shift. Businesses are looking to digitize outdated, paper-based processes, reduce costs and improve working capital management. Across all payment flows, Visa CEO Ryan McInerney said on his company’s first-quarter conference call with analysts that Visa’s quarterly volume of about $4 trillion was being driven by the shift to digital payments, which now account for more than 60% of volume