Day 2 at ETA Transact: AI in Action, Embedded Finance at Scale, and Human Impact

Hi there,

We’re deep into ETA Transact 2025—and Day 2 didn’t disappoint. From major product announcements to thought-provoking conversations on the future of AI, payments, and financial accessibility, the energy here at Mandalay Bay is still building.

Here’s what stood out on the show floor today 👇

🎤 On-the-Ground: Key Sessions From Day 2

🧠 The Future is Bright for B2B Payments
The office of the CFO is becoming the new innovation engine. Panelists from Boost and Versapay argued that automation is no longer optional — it’s the heartbeat of modern B2B finance. Expect reconciliation, dynamic terms, and even “agentic payments” to define the future. A standout moment? A callout to the “whippersnapper” generation demanding frictionless workflows and pushing legacy systems to evolve fast.

🤖 Leveraging AI and Integrated POS Solutions
POS platforms aren’t just cash registers anymore. Clover, Payroc, and Paysafe spoke about using AI to auto-load menus, streamline operations, and deliver better customer insights. The stat that stuck? 91% of small businesses are now actively using AI tools. The era of "hire-first" has flipped — now it’s "automate first, hire second."

🎙️ Exclusive Bobsguide Interviews

💬 Shae Orrick, Senior Product Manager, Worldpay

“Commerce 360 lets merchants choose their own adventure.”

Shae gave us the lowdown on Worldpay’s turnkey POS solution designed for overwhelmed SMBs. Think: GoDaddy integrations, TikTok Shop APIs, and built-in AI tools that help merchants set up websites and catalogs in under 20 minutes. Also — yes, Commerce 360 can sync all your marketplaces in one portal.

💬 Sukanya Madhavan, Chief Product & Tech Officer, CSG Forte

“It’s not perfection — it’s progress.”

Sukanya shared how CSG Forte is doubling down on modernization without compromising on trust. She spoke about the dual focus: using AI to reduce integration times and future-proofing core payment systems for 50x scale. Big on open banking, embedded lending, and using AI to spot risk before it happens.

💬 Barrett Smith, Chief Payments & Ops Officer, Versapay

“You’re either speeding up cash flow or leaving money on the table.”

Barrett laid out how Versapay is using data and ERP integrations to become a “reconciliation engine” for the office of the CFO. From DSO reduction to embedded ERP payments, the goal is clear: automate every link in the B2B payments chain. Plus, they're going hard on AI for predictive collections and client risk scoring.

💬 Peter Galvin, CMO, NMI

“We’re the brand behind the brand.”

Peter explained how NMI’s white-label infrastructure quietly powers omnichannel payments. Their latest moves? Tap-to-mobile in partnership with Mastercard, network tokenization for better security and acceptance rates, and embedded fraud AI via Kount. Oh — and they're big believers in GenAI for everything from dev cycles to partner feedback loops.

🌟 Spotlight on Liberis

One Day Left: Your Last Chance to Meet with Liberis at Transact

Don’t leave Vegas without sitting down with the team behind one of the most compelling embedded finance platforms in the industry.

With their Create Journey API, Liberis enables platforms to offer personalized, pre-approved funding options to their SMB customers—at scale, and with a single integration. They’re already powering embedded lending experiences for partners across e-commerce, accounting, and payments.

🔥 Hot Takes – Direct from the Show Floor

🧠 “Not every offering will survive AI — but none will avoid it.”
— Grey Burnett, CFO at CentreEdge Software

Grey broke down how AI will inevitably touch every corner of hospitality and family entertainment. But he made it clear: CentreEdge isn’t chasing trends — they’re focused on thoughtful, benefit-driven AI rollout that actually improves guest experiences, not just adds buzzwords.

🔌 “Payments are just the start — B2B merchants want real value.”
— Natalie Luneva, COO at DepositFix

Natalie delivered a mic-drop moment: forget small merchant payment fees — B2B clients bleed time and money from broken workflows. DepositFix steps in with deep integrations across ERP, CRM, and invoicing, streamlining everything from quotes to reconciliation. It’s value-first payments for the enterprise era.

🛍️ “The trend? Frictionless everything.”
— Nima Montazeri, CPO at Liberis

According to Nima, integrated merchant experiences aren’t optional anymore — they’re the default. Expect “everything in one place” to become table stakes, from embedded finance to smart onboarding and frictionless funding. (Also, shoutout to Liberis for sponsoring this newsletter 💛)

👁️ “Biometrics are coming — but merchants need convincing.”
— Tonida Vaka, Co-Founder & CEO at TapifyGo

Tonida is keeping a close eye on facial recognition and palm payments — but predicts a slower adoption curve due to privacy concerns. Where she is seeing major traction? Fraud prevention via facial biometrics, and ISOs/ISVs demanding bundled solutions that unify loyalty, receipts, and value-added services.

🎯 Don’t Miss These Sessions on Day 3

We’ve handpicked these Day 2 agenda highlights for leaders innovating in SMB finance, embedded payments, and data-driven credit models:

🕘 9:00 AM – Fintech in the Era of Regulation
Room 2205A
A panel discussion on balancing compliance with innovation in the U.S. vs. EU markets.

🕚 11:00 AM – From Legacy to Lean: The Infrastructure Playbook
Room 2102B
How providers are modernizing core payments architecture to enable faster, smarter processing.

🕒 2:30 PM – AI and Agent-Based Automation in Payments
Room 2203C
The most future-facing session of the day—expect use cases, demos, and real-world implementation strategies.

🕠 5:30 PM – Closing Happy Hour + Expo Wrap-Up
Bayside Hall D
One final chance to connect, pitch, and reflect on the week.

🌐 What’s Happening on Socials?

Keep your eyes on your inbox — we’ll be back tomorrow with your Day 2 recap. And don’t forget to follow Bobsguide on LinkedIn for real-time updates from the show floor.

🔗 Follow us on Instagram and TikTok for real-time updates.

— The Unofficially ETA Transact Team

Not affiliated with ETA Transact Events

Bobsguide is a Contentive publication in the Events division