Abstract: In early 2017, debit card transaction volume took an abrupt and steep decline. In 2018, issuers face a new normal with lower and unpredictable growth, compressed margins, and ever-changing fraud challenges. Meanwhile, push payments will make debit cards important as the gateway to consumers’ and small businesses’ transaction accounts. Person-to-person (P2P) payment strategies will become more important to financial institutions as they seek to fend off competition from successful fintech products. Planning faster and real-time payment solutions will reach fever pitch as financial institutions look for profitable use cases and providers aim to make real-time payments ubiquitous.