Mobile

The Intersection of Corporate Governance and Compliance: Helping Your Directors Fulfill Their Responsibilities

An Interview with John Walsh, CEO, SightSpan  Serving on a corporate board is a great honor and a great responsibility, especially for those involved in financial services organizations. Gone are the days when directors were management’s rubberstamp. And particularly since the global financial crisis of 2008, significantly more is expected of non-management corporate directors. Today’s […]

• 4th June 2013

Heartland Digs into School Lunch Payments with Mobile App (June 4, 2013)

Heartland School Solutions, a division of Princeton, N.J.-based payments processor Heartland Payment Systems, has unveiled a new mobile app that enables parents of school-aged children to manage their kids’ lunch expenses via smartphone or tablet.

• 4th June 2013

payleven Signals International Expansion Ambitions with Apple, Wirecard Connections (June 4, 2013)

As competition heats up in the mobile merchant acceptance arena, payleven hopes to improve its odds of gaining international market share with a deal to sell its chip-and-PIN readers in Apple Inc. stores across Europe plus a new strategic alliance it’s formed with Germany-based Wirecard AG.

• 4th June 2013

UK mobile banking “at tipping point” says VocaLink

One in four customers in the UK is now using mobile banking services– and bank-driven systems are leading the way, according to new research by mobile payments specialist VocaLink.

• 30th May 2013

Taking the pain out of paying in Spain

Spanish banks La Caixa and Santander have partnered with telecoms firm Telefónica to create a joint venture offering mobile payment services and a digital wallet designed to relegate conventional payment methods to the history books.

• 30th May 2013

Telefónica Joins with Spanish FIs for New Mobile JV (May 30, 2013)

May 30, 2013 Spain-based telecom giant Telefónica has joined with Spanish financial services providers CaixaBank and Santander to form a new company to develop “business opportunities based on the latest mobile and communication technologies.” According to the involved companies, the alliance is Europe’s first full joint venture between financial institutions and telecom operators for the […]

• 30th May 2013

Mobey Forum: Most FIs Likely to Go It Alone on Digital Wallets (May 30, 2013)

May 30, 2013 Banks and other financial institutions looking to enter into the mobile wallet arena are likely to find a market rife with competition, mostly in the form of own-branded products that deliver proprietary services only. That was among the findings in a new white paper by Mobey Forum’s Business Workgroup, the fourth in […]

• 30th May 2013

Visa Mobile Card Reader Comes to Taiwan (May 29, 2013)

• 29th May 2013

Money via email: will Google bring the breakthrough?

The idea of sending money via email is not entirely new. This month, however, a new financial player entered this arena: Google announced that it will integrate Google Wallet into Gmail.

• 23rd May 2013

Boost Mobile’s Wallet Packs One-Two Punch (May 23, 2013)

May 23, 2013 Sprint’s Boost Mobile is taking a page out of O2’s playbook in the U.K.—launching a mobile wallet for online transactions with a companion prepaid Visa card for use at brick-and-mortar locations. One of the first telcos in the U.S. to launch its own wallet—AT&T Mobility, Verizon and T-Mobile have joined together on […]

• 23rd May 2013

Square Ventures Overseas: First Stop, Japan (May 23, 2013)

Mobile payments platform Square has ventured into its first market outside North America, becoming publicly available in Japan, the company announced today. “I am honored to introduce Square to a country with a rich history of design, innovation and tradition. Square shares the same values and attention to detail in our products,” said Jack Dorsey, […]

• 23rd May 2013

GiftCards.com Bolsters Mobile Offerings with Giftly Acquisition (May 23, 2013)

May 23, 2013 GiftCards.com, a subsidiary of Pittsburgh-based Wolfe LLC, is deepening its digital offerings with the acquisition this week of Giftly, a mobile app-based digital gift card service. Giftly, a San Francisco-based startup launched in 2011, enables consumers to purchase digital gift cards that may be designated for specific purchases at any U.S. merchant […]

• 23rd May 2013

Blog: User Experience Flaws Bog Down Top Retail Apps (May 2013)

By Joseph DeSetto, Emerging Payments Blogger In every technology shift, users are confronted with interfaces that were designed for the previous generation. For example, early PCs rendered graphics of Rolodexes, clocks and other analog desk accoutrements. In this tradition, users of today’s smartphones often are presented with a shopping experience that was designed for the […]

• 23rd May 2013

Blog: Mobile Payments: A Solution Looking for a Problem? (May 2013)

By Ginger Schmeltzer, Fiserv For years we’ve been debating why mobile payments haven’t taken off faster. Debaters point out issues with the number of players in the value chain, business model challenges, competing technologies, lack of a compelling value proposition, security concerns and more. All of these points are valid: Business models are all over […]

• 23rd May 2013

Remittances: a window to the future?

The $400 billion global remittances market is moving from cash to account-based transfer, but costs, regulations and new competitors are still the key issues.

• 21st May 2013

Tearing up the financial services value chain

Traditional finance is not as we once knew it. The internet has completely disrupted the financial services value chain. The banks are struggling to keep up with advancing technology. Understanding mobile, cloud computing, social media, big data and how to utilise each capability are key challenges for the banks to overcome.

• 21st May 2013

Square Launches P2P Service as M-Payment Competition Intensifies (May 21, 2013)

• 21st May 2013

LevelUp to Integrate M-Payment, Loyalty Solution into NCR POS Systems (May 21, 2013)

LevelUp, a promotion-based mobile payment and loyalty network from Boston-based SCVNGR, has reached an agreement with NCR Corp. to integrate its mobile payment and loyalty solution into NCR’s restaurant POS systems, giving restaurants another way to accept mobile payments and market to their customers.

• 21st May 2013

Project Catalyst: A Collaborative Approach to Consumer Protection? (May 2013)

CFPB Invites ‘Innovative’ Companies to Share Consumer Data, Ideas to Help Shape Policies By Kate Fitzgerald, Emerging Payments Editor The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) since its formation in 2011 has generated great interest and, at times, controversy over its mission and leadership in its role of creating and enforcing federal financial services regulations. While […]

• 21st May 2013

First Data Partners with MPayMe in Asia-Pacific to Provide Merchants with M-Payment App (May 20, 2013)

• 20th May 2013

Report: NFC ‘Gaining Steam’ Worldwide (May 20, 2013)

• 20th May 2013

Mobile Carrier Biller payvia Acquires Mobile Marketing Firm Mogreet (May 20, 2013)

• 20th May 2013

Identity and mobile figure large at payments and cards event

The themes of security, identity and mobility ran strongly through the Cards and Payments Middle East conference in Dubai this week – and not just because the event itself is sandwiched between related and interlinked events focusing on Mobile and Identity.

• 17th May 2013

Swift Innotribe names Singapore startup challenge finalists

Swift’s innovation-focused spin-off Innotribe has announced the five Singapore finalists for its global startup challenge, which aims to help innovative new companies in financial services to develop their ideas and transform them into working businesses.

• 17th May 2013

Digital progression in retail banking: Europe’s banks are not fully prepared

Across Europe many banks feel unprepared for the next phase of the ‘digital revolution’, while factors such as expensive compliance regulations, poor data management and outdated systems are constraining them from implementing new solutions

• 17th May 2013

Blog: NFC: Your Move, Apple (June 2012)(2)

By Joseph DeSetto, Full Sail University   Near field communication, or NFC, is a technology that, on the surface, has tremendous potential. The Japanese vending machine experience of paying for your favorite flavor of sugar water without taking coins from your wallet has been an image of the future for several years now. But for […]

• 17th May 2013

Blog: Well-Designed Mobile Payments Key to App Success (October 2012)

By Joe DeSetto, Emerging Payments Blogger Great design is often highly subjective and can be maddening for executive decision makers. Steve Jobs’ well-known response to his engineers trying to find a solution he would accept was: “I’ll know it when I see it.” Design, and the delightful products and experiences that result, is an art […]

• 17th May 2013

Blog: Blackhawk IPO and the Value of Prepaid Distribution

By John Grund, First Annapolis Consulting Safeway’s decision to IPO a minority stake of Blackhawk Network is yet another milestone in the evolution of the prepaid industry, given Blackhawk’s unique distribution role in the broader value chain. Green Dot and NetSpend serve as bell weathers for the market value of program managers in the prepaid […]

• 17th May 2013

Blog: Loyalty Cards and Network Branded Prepaid Make a Perfect Match in Emerging Markets (November 2012)

By David Parker, Polymath Consulting Recently we saw the announcement by Nakumatt in Kenya—think Tesco in the U.K., Walmart in the United States—that it will convert all of its 1 million loyalty cards to prepaid MasterCard cards. Polymath Consulting worked with Diamond Trust Bank (DTB), one of the two issuing banks selected by Nakumatt, and […]

• 17th May 2013

Blog: Older Technology Seeds Future Mobile Payments

The developed world, especially here in the United States, has a very specific idea of what mobile means, and mobile payments in particular. There are certain technologies that spring to mind as acceptably cutting edge and worth attention, such as apps, QR codes, Square, Apple Passbook and Google Wallet. These technologies are now and ahead […]

• 17th May 2013

Blog: Crossing the Border: More Reason to Check Your Pockets (November 2012)

By Cynthia Merritt, Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta It’s no secret that cross-border travel has involved a lot more restrictions since 9-11. Declaration of assets and physical inspection of luggage and other items are expected, as well as tedious and unpleasant, aspects of a vacation or business trip. That could change soon and not for […]

• 17th May 2013

Blog: Roasting Starbucks’ 12 Days of Gifting

By Joe DeSetto, Emerging Payments Blogger In the acclaimed television series Mad Men, an average copywriter named Harry Crane invents a role as his agency’s new Head of Television. In this fictional retro world, the old guard that runs the agency in the early 1960s has no idea of the importance of this new broadcast […]

• 17th May 2013

Blog: U.S. Prepaid Companies Aren’t the Only Ones Shopping in Europe (December)

By David Parker, Polymath Consulting The last several months have seen two very interesting pieces of M&A activity in Europe. First, we saw Wright Express’ take over  CorporatePay. CorporatePay was a “pure play” program manager specializing in the corporate-loaded sector and, in particular, virtual prepaid cards used by the travel sector for supplier payments. For […]

• 17th May 2013

Blog: As Automobiles Become Devices, Truly Mobile Payments on the Horizon (January 2013)

By Joe DeSetto, Emerging Payments Blogger Siri, Apple’s voice assist for iOS devices, already is a steering wheel button on some newer model cars. BMW has an option listed next to the premium leather seating called BMW Apps. Fords now include Sync, a Microsoft technology, and released the Ford Developer Program and a new open […]

• 17th May 2013

Blog: Consumer Prepaid Saturation in U.K.? (March 2013)

 By David Parker, Polymath Consulting Are we reaching market saturation for consumer-loaded prepaid programs in the U.K.? Our latest industry research suggests the answer may be “yes.” Polymath has published The Prepaid Report since 2007, tracking the number and types of consumer-loaded prepaid cards programs in the U.K.  Our latest report makes interesting reading because […]

• 17th May 2013

Blog: Tipping Point for M-Payments Hidden in SMS App and Obscure Pizza Promo (April 2013)

By Joseph DeSetto, Emerging Payments Blogger It wasn’t long ago that mobile payments apps for the current generation of smartphones were difficult and time consuming for even experienced programmers to create. Much like the early days of e-commerce, standard ways of protecting user data, providing a consistent interface and user experience that would be trusted, […]

• 17th May 2013

Blog: Venmo App Makes P2P Transactions Social (March 2013)

By Joseph DeSetto, Emerging Payments Blogger A continuous stream of posts with witty comments or pop culture references is nothing new online after years of Facebook, Twitter and various other social services. But when the same type of feed appears in social commerce app Venmo—available online and on a mobile device near you—the effect is […]

• 17th May 2013

Blog: Digital/Mobile Payments and the Power of Social Media (April 2013)

By Hunny Huria, Visa At times I’m amazed how social media has changed our lives and continues to have potential to impact it more. There are innumerable people who start the day by checking their Facebook accounts. As of December 2012, Facebook had more than half a billion daily active users, and 9 million apps […]

• 17th May 2013

Blog: Faster Pussycat! Why Payments Need to Be Faster than a Speeding Laptop (May 2013)

By Nick Holland, Javelin Strategy & Research I bought a new laptop the other day. I won’t bore you with the details of its specifications, but suffice to say, as a professional nerd, I get pretty excited about these things. In fact, I got so excited that I actually bought it as an impulse purchase […]

• 17th May 2013

Standard Bank South Africa targets ‘unbanked’ customers via mobile

South Africa’s Standard Bank has introduced a new mobile banking tool called AccessBanking, which aims to reach unbanked customers in the country.

• 16th May 2013