BILL Stock And 2 Digital Payments Picks Retail Investors May Want To Watch

AI is putting a fresh spotlight on who really profits from personal data, with proposals for $15,000 annual payments to families and talk of a $300b data market and trillion dollar AI IPOs. That debate could reshape how digital payments and benefits infrastructure businesses earn, tax and regulate revenue streams. This article looks at three US stocks exposed to that story and why their future cash flows may matter to your portfolio.

The stocks highlighted below are just a sample, and the full screen surfaced 51 more US digital payments and benefits infrastructure companies with equally compelling narratives that are not covered here. To go beyond this short list, head straight to the US Digital Payments and Benefits Infrastructure screener to identify, filter and analyze the highest conviction ideas in this theme.

BILL Holdings (BILL)

BILL Holdings runs a cloud-based financial operations platform that automates how small and midsize businesses handle billing, pay suppliers, collect from customers and route digital payments. This ties it closely to the theme of rising recurring digital disbursements. The company generates about US$1.6b in revenue from its Software & Programming segment, largely tied to software and payment processing activity on its platform. At a market cap of roughly US$4.8b, BILL is a mid sized US fintech embedded in the digital payments and benefits infrastructure theme.

For investors watching how AI and data driven policy debates could feed through into payment volumes, BILL Holdings offers exposure to SMB financial automation that already uses AI agents to handle payables, receivables and spend workflows. Analysts have highlighted the potential for stronger earnings as those AI tools attract more usage, yet current profit margins are very thin, and recent one off charges and reliance on external funding keep risk in focus. If recurring digital disbursements, from governments or large platforms, become more common, a scaled processor of SMB payment flows like BILL could be well placed. The key consideration for investors is whether its pricing power, competitive landscape and funding model support the expectations reflected in current growth forecasts.

Accelerating AI driven workflows and thin margins make BILL Holdings hard to ignore for anyone tracking future payment flows. Get the full story in the 3 key rewards and 2 important warning signs

Build your own AI payments shortlist

BILL Holdings and the two other stocks in this article are all examples of what can surface from a focused screener built around digital payments, data and AI themes. Use our flexible Screener to mix filters like valuation, growth and financial health for your own shortlist, or lean on our curated Investing Ideas for ready made starting points.

PicS (PICS)

PicS is a Brazil based digital wallet and financial app that plugs directly into the theme of digital payments and benefits infrastructure by handling instant payments, bill settlement, payroll related flows and financial services inside one platform. Most of its roughly R$11.7b in revenue comes from Consumer Banking at about R$11.7b, with smaller contributions from Institutional at about R$1.7b and Small and Medium Sized Businesses at about R$500 million, partly offset by inter segment adjustments. The stock has a market cap of about US$1.3b, which puts it firmly in mid cap fintech territory.

PicS offers exposure to a Brazilian super app style fintech that ties together Pix instant payments, banking, lending, insurance, investments and merchant solutions, which can create multiple ways to earn from each user rather than relying only on card fees. The company has been reporting strong revenue and earnings growth, improving net margins and healthy return on equity, while the current valuation and Simply Wall St DCF work suggest the shares price in a lot of caution for that profile. At the same time, investors need to weigh real risks around credit quality in its loan book, reliance on external funding rather than deposits and ongoing IPO related litigation. If you are watching how AI, data driven payments and emerging market fintech platforms intersect, PicS is a story worth understanding in more detail before the next set of results and regulatory updates land.

PicS is building a multi product Brazilian fintech platform around Pix payments, credit and insurance. Yet, the real twist in the story sits in the 4 key rewards and 1 important warning sign

Vertex (VERX)

Vertex is a US based enterprise tax software company that helps large retailers, wholesalers and manufacturers calculate indirect taxes on each transaction, file returns and manage e-invoicing. This connects it directly to the Digital Payments and Benefits Infrastructure theme around recurring fiscal flows and data linked income. The business generates about US$787 million in revenue from its Software & Programming segment and has a market cap of roughly US$2.0b, putting it in mid cap territory.

Vertex provides exposure to the systems that support tax on digital payments, at a time when AI linked data rights debates and potential direct payment programs could increase the volume and complexity of taxable flows. The company is expanding into AI driven tools and e-invoicing, with recent results highlighting growth in recurring software revenue and EBITDA, while analysts also cite competition, high leverage and leadership transition as risks. For investors who want a mix of tax compliance related cash flows, regulatory tailwinds and AI linked tools in one stock, Vertex may be a candidate for further research before forming a firm view on its long term role in a portfolio.

Vertex sits at the intersection of recurring tax flows and AI tools, yet many investors may be missing how these trends shape its cash generation and competitive risks. Get the full picture in the 4 key rewards and 2 important warning signs

Seeking Fresh Alternatives Before Others Catch On

Fresh themes often emerge quietly. Momentum can then build and attractive entry points may become harder to find. Scan these under the radar ideas before the broader market focuses on them and consider whether they fit your approach.

• Spot potential income workhorses that are built to keep paying by reviewing a curated 11 dividend fortresses that screens for payout strength while it still flies below most radars.
• Explore the next wave of automation by checking a focused set of 37 robotics and automation stocks designed to highlight companies involved in factories, warehouses and real world AI tools.
• Review emerging digital rails before they become more widely followed by using a tight 20 cryptocurrency and blockchain stocks list of stocks tied to blockchain infrastructure and token payment systems.

This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.

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