i2c to Present New Research on the Evolving Role of the Issuer Processor at American Banker's Payments Forum

REDWOOD CITY, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--i2c Inc., a global financial technology innovator, today announced that Dean Scharmen, Chief Growth Officer at i2c, will present new research produced in partnership with American Banker at the American Banker Payments Forum, taking place May 4–6, 2026, in San Francisco. Scharmen will deliver a session titled “The New Payments Partnership: How Issuers and Processors Are Reshaping Bank Modernization,” moderated by Michael Moeser, Editorial Content Strategist at American Banker, on Wednesday, May 6, at 11:45 a.m. PT.

The presentation offers attendees a preview of a new research report, examining how the relationship between issuing institutions and processors is evolving as banking and payments infrastructure modernization accelerates. The full report is scheduled to be published in June 2026.

Once viewed primarily as back-end technology or middleware providers, issuer processors have evolved into strategic partners central to enabling issuing institution priorities. As a next-generation global banking and payments technology provider powering financial institutions and fintechs across more than 216 countries, i2c brings a firsthand perspective to this research, examining how a more concentrated landscape, alongside the rise of newly chartered digital-first players, is reshaping issuer and processor relationships as processor technology and architecture design significantly influences an issuer’s ability to modernize, innovate, and elevate the customer experience. The study also explores how financial institutions of different sizes are recalibrating expectations around service, collaboration, accountability, and long-term risk as they navigate trade-offs between choice, innovation, and dependency on processing partners in an increasingly competitive payments environment.

“Issuing institutions today are navigating a payments landscape that looks nothing like it did a decade ago. Provider consolidation, the rise of digital‑first and embedded finance models, and accelerating demands for real‑time, data‑rich payments are fundamentally raising the bar for processing platforms,” said Scharmen. “This research delivers a rare, data‑driven perspective on how those market forces are redefining what financial institutions and fintechs expect from their technology partners. From resilience and scalability to speed, configurability, and trust, I look forward to bringing this timely discussion to the Payments Forum as issuers reassess how modern infrastructure enables both innovation and sustainable growth.”

The Payments Forum brings together senior executives from financial institutions, payments companies, and technology providers to discuss trends and strategies shaping the industry's future. The full conference agenda is available at payments-forum.americanbanker.com.

In addition to the Payments Forum presentation, i2c will showcase the complete research findings at its Accelerate Executive Summit on May 18, 2026, with the full report and a dedicated webinar to follow in June.

About i2c Inc.

An award-winning global financial technology innovator powering credit, debit, prepaid, core banking, and money movement solutions, i2c unifies banking and payments in an all-in-one platform, transforming product personalization with a customer-centric architecture and accelerating speed-to-market with composable building-block solutions. Financial institutions and fintechs globally trust i2c to help them quickly and efficiently configure and scale differentiated financial offerings in an evolving, competitive market. Powered by innovation and driven by trust for more than 25 years, i2c blends modern ingenuity with expert reliability to supercharge exceptional banking and payments experiences for millions of users and billions of transactions worldwide.

For more information, visit i2cinc.com and follow us on LinkedIn at @i2cinc.