A new global study from ACI Worldwide (NASDAQ: ACIW) and Globant indicates that although payment industry leaders remain optimistic about innovation, many organisations risk losing momentum as expectations rise faster than their ability to evolve. The research highlights a widening divide between optimism and actual preparedness, setting the stage for potential shifts in industry leadership heading into 2026.
The report, Payments in Transition: Leadership in an era of transformation, draws on insights from 500 senior leaders across North America, Europe, Latin America, the Middle East & Africa and Asia Pacific. While 69% of respondents believe their organisations are already payments leaders, only 44% say that payments innovation is treated as a priority at the C-suite level.
This inconsistency is shaped by obstacles that are becoming increasingly expensive to overlook. More than half (55%) of senior executives acknowledge they are not fully leveraging existing technologies, and 44% identify legacy systems as the most significant barrier to progress. In addition, 53% cite cultural resistance within their organisations as a major challenge preventing effective transformation.
The cumulative effect is a payments modernisation gap, where strategic intentions exceed operational capability, exposing organisations to competitive risk as regulatory and technological requirements accelerate. By 2026, fast, frictionless and secure payment experiences will be expected as standard, with rising consumer expectations adding further urgency. Notably, 79% of executives identify customer demand as the single greatest catalyst for change, with payments expected to be instant, secure and consistently reliable.