Digital Payments Are Having a Jolly Holiday

This year’s Black Friday might not have been marked by stories of mobs of shoppers like in past years, but it made up for that drama digitally.

In-store U.S. retail sales on Black Friday rose 1.1% over last year, according to Mastercard SpendingPulse, and e-commerce sales were up 8.5%. That might help give a second wind to digital payments stocks whose shares have struggled at times in the postpandemic era.