If the Big Three defaulted on their debts, holders of credit default swaps--which in recent years have grown like toxic weeds--would demand payment from those who wrote the insurance on the automakers' bonds.

FORBES: How Capitalism Will Save Us

The growing adoption rates of payment technologies by small-business owners might partially explain why credit demand for working capital from small firms remains stubbornly low, even as their balance sheets and credit-worthiness improve, according to Robb Hilson, head of Bank of America small-business segment.

WSJ: Mobile Payments Brighten Small-Business Cash Flow