Industries are defined by what customers do, not what companies produce. And if something doesn’t scale up across a global audience, then it isn’t worth much. That’s why, as more small- to medium-sized businesses (SMBs) look to do business internationally, solving for low-cost cross-border payments has become vital for the financial services industry. Cross-border transactions have traditionally had the highest frictions and costs of any form of payment. Solving for these historical bottlenecks has drawn the attention of non-bank platforms and firms offering alternative payment methods, as well as an increasing interest from incumbent financial institutions. This, as a slate of new announcements this week highlight the accelerating go-to-market pace both incumbent and emergent payment players are taking with innovative solutions and technologies that are simplifying cross-border transactions.