The document discusses the future of payments in the 21st century and how new technologies and business models are disrupting traditional payment systems. It analyzes trends like real-time payments, use of unique identifiers like phone numbers and emails, push-based systems like PayPal versus pull-based card networks, improved security and fraud controls, lower processing costs, and the transition away from paper checks and plastic cards to digital and mobile-based payments. PayPal is highlighted as an example of a company leveraging these 21st century innovations to build a highly successful new payments platform.