Axios

Digital payments processing company Stripe is expanding into Hong Kong and has struck deals with WeChat Pay and Alipay, which combined account for 92% of digital payments in China.

"Located between Mainland China and the rest of Asia, Hong Kong is a launchpad for thousands of globally-minded Asian entrepreneurs and a gateway to Asia for businesses around the world," Stripe said in a blog post on Sunday.

Why it matters: Founded by brothers Patrick and John Collision, Stripe already powers many digital transactions globally, but entering China gives it access to a large and growing market that is already doing a ton of digital transactions. And partnering with Chinese companies is a key to cracking that market.

The White House is racing to stop Congress from sending a Russia sanctions bill to the President's desk that would tie his hands in his negotiations with Putin, and potentially create the biggest political humiliation of his presidency.

In meetings in secure rooms, administration officials are quietly making the case to Republican members that the sanctions bill they rushed through the Senate on a 97-2 vote needs waivers to give Trump the flexibility to negotiate with Putin.

Administration officials believe the longer the bill gets delayed, the better their chances of convincing members that the bill is bad for diplomacy and bad for American companies — especially in the energy sector — who would be punished for doing international business with Russian companies.

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