MPS/Chesapeake Expands Services with IPS, Jet Acquisitions (April 9, 2014)
M&A activity is on the rise in the payments industry, and the latest deal is in the card manufacturing and fulfillment space.
Worldwide
Firms still struggling with SEFs for swaps trading says IPC survey
Trading firms are still struggling with the Dodd-Frank requirement for certain swaps to be traded on registered Swap Execution Facilities. According to a survey conducted by trading communications vendor IPC Systems, 60% of survey respondents said the industry as a whole was behind on meeting the deadlines on SEF trading, though only 39% said their […]
BIAN adds business scenarios to banking IT standards framework
Standards consortium BIAN has released a new version of its industry standard framework containing more than 180 business scenarios including back-office, trade finance and sales.
La. Reps Favor Paper Checks over Prepaid Cards in Certain Instance (April 8, 2014)
As tax day approaches, the Louisiana House of Representatives yesterday approved a bill that would end the state’s Department of Revenue practice of automatically sending tax refunds on prepaid debit cards to taxpayers who don’t select a specific method for receiving their funds.
BofA Merrill’s Virtual Corporate Payments Platform Nearly Doubles Suppliers (April 8, 2014)
Virtual payment cards continue to gain ground in the B2B sector, with Bank of America Merrill Lynch announcing its ePayables electronic accounts payables platform has surpassed 100,000 enrolled corporate suppliers—nearly doubling from 56,000 enrolled suppliers two years ago.
paysafecard Adds Loyalty Program to Online Payments Account (April 8, 2014)
Payments providers of every stripe are seeking ways to increase customer loyalty. Austria-based paysafecard, which offers one-time use e-vouchers, now is rewarding customers who opt to use its online payments account, my paysafecard.
Startup Aims to Bridge Gap between Bitcoin and Offline Payments (April 8, 2014)
Often lost amid the regulatory and legal controversy surrounding Bitcoin and other digital payments is a somewhat more practical issue; it’s just hard to spend the stuff in the real, offline world.
Bitcoin: the indestructible currency?
Despite the high profile media scandals surrounding the demise of the Mt Gox exchange and the Silk Road trading website, Bitcoin is evolving rapidly and will soon present a better, more stable and accountable alternative to the fiat currencies most of us trust and use every day, according to Mark Lamb, chief executive of London-based Bitcoin exchange Coinfloor.
Equity markets “not broken” say TradeTech speakers
Despite the deep controversy created by Michael Lewis’ expose of HFT Flash Boys, global equity markets are not broken, according to a senior capital markets panel at Trade Tech Paris 2014.
Microsoft XP Support Ends, Sparking ATM Security Concerns (April 7, 2014)
Microsoft tomorrow will issue the final security update for Windows XP, a 12-year-old product the software giant says no longer suits the risks of today’s computing environments. But millions of computers worldwide are still running XP, including an estimated 95 percent of U.S. ATMs, experts say.
Proposed Canadian AML Changes Could Affect Digital Currency, FMSBs (April 7, 2014)
The Canadian government has proposed a series of amendments to the country’s money laundering legislation, including provisions to extend the laws to cover digital currencies.
Study Dubs Omnichannel No. 1 Payments Trend (April 7, 2014)
Payments are in the midst of some fundamental changes that will continually reshape the industry landscape for years to come, according to a new white paper from Vantiv Inc., outlining the top 10 payment trends to watch in 2014.
Surveys: Consumers See Value in Prepaid Cards; Banks’ Overdraft Fees Increase (April 7, 2014)
A majority of Americans view the features of reloadable prepaid cards favorably as financial institutions’ fees for checking account overdrafts have started to creep up, according to two recently released surveys.
New solutions for optimising cash in the retail industry
Managing cash in stores remains a major challenge for retailers – trapped cash hinders working capital management and is unavailable for investment, debt repayment or business expansion. But new ways are being developed to manage store cash …
Integrating the digital future
Balázs Vinnai, now with Misys, talks about changing banking and payments technology needs.
April 2014 Intra-day liquidity – a blessing in disguise
Intraday liquidity reporting becomes mandatory next January. It might just provide an opportunity to reassess the way banks approach risk.
EU Parliament Postpones Final Vote on Payments Package until After July Elections (April 3, 2014)
European Parliament today voted in a plenary session to accept the text of the revised payment industry regulations (PSD2 and MIF) that the ECON committee voted on last month.
MasterCard: Prepaid Up 40 Percent in APMEA (April 3, 2014)
MasterCard’s prepaid business is booming in Asia-Pacific, the Middle East and Africa (APMEA), showing 40 percent growth in gross dollar volume in the regions for 2013, the payment network said today.
Comdata Eyes IPO (April 3, 2014)
Corporate payments provider Comdata Inc. is set to go public.
DCR Strategies Inc./TruCash Partners with Carta to Launch Mobile Payments (April 3, 2014)
Program manager DCR Strategies Inc./TruCash and technology provider Carta Worldwide soon will be launching payment solutions, such as NFC mobile payments, virtual prepaid and integrated loyalty programs, using conventional payment methods and host card emulation (HCE), which emulates an NFC card in the cloud.
U.K.’s Financial Conduct Authority Comment Period Ends April 15 (April 3, 2014)
Building on previous consultations by Her Majesty’s Treasury and the Office of Fair Trading, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) is soliciting comment regarding the U.K. payments industry, in particular on issues of competition, access, governance, ownership and innovation.
Special Report: Payments modernisation – the future is happening now
With a revolution in consumer payments happening at the point-of-sale, online and increasingly through the mobile channel, there is a need and an appetite for change across every aspect of the payments industry.
Banking Goliaths must learn to dance with “Digital Davids”
Partnerships and alliances with innovative digital entrepreneurs will allow the large incumbent banks to adapt and thrive in the new economic ecosystems being created by the mobile and digital revolutions currently changing the industry.
Viewpoint: Bitcoin Payment Services: Challenges, Opportunities and the Role of Regulation
Did you know SWIFT, invented in 1973, the backbone of the current bank transfer system still uses telegraph to transmit payment information? Really! To me, that’s not too dissimilar from using pigeons as messengers rather than email. Maybe it’s time to upgrade our payment systems.
Viewpoint: Prepaid Cleared for Takeoff in Russia
Forget politics. As Russia moves its way toward a cashless economy, prepaid cards will thrive amid increasing demand from different customer groups, development of a regulatory framework and increasing interest from retailers building loyalty programs.
Stop selling and start listening, say corporates
Banks don’t really understand the needs of corporates and are often so busy focusing on selling that they forget basic customer requirements, according to speakers at the IPS conference in London this week
Banks – “Don’t Panic”, says Wells Fargo’s Ellis
The banking industry is complex by its nature but banks and bankers should look up from their budgets, listen to their customers, stop whining about regulations and collaborate on industry issues.
Viewpoint: CFPB’s Draft Model Forms Highlight Problems with Uniform Disclosures
What do apples and oranges have to do with prepaid model disclosures? See David Beam’s analysis of the CFPB’s blog proposal.
D.C. Court Rules ZIP Code Isn’t an Address
Had the case not been dismissed, ZIP code-related class action lawsuits likely would spread.
PayPal Cooks Up Success with Bistros, Food Trucks (April 1, 2014)
PayPal is expanding its reach by getting on the menu as a payment option at small bistros and food trucks around the world that are switching to tablet-based POS systems.
Apple Co-Founder Wozniak Talks ‘Creative Misbehavior’ at InComm Partner Alliance (April 1, 2014)
Apple Co-Founder Steve Wozniak, the technical guru behind the original Apple computers, kept nearly 1,000 attendees at InComm’s annual Partner Alliance spellbound with his tale of how a “geeky, electronics kid,” driven by his passion to solve problems and compulsion to engage in “creative misbehavior,” led to a famous partnership with legendary Steve Jobs.
M-Pesa Enters Europe with Romanian Launch (April 1, 2014)
Mobile payment service M-Pesa has arrived in Europe with its launch yesterday in Romania, following expansions into other countries, such as Egypt and India, in recent years.
Survey: Mobile Apps Could Improve Customer Care Woes (April 1, 2014)
Mobile-based customer care is failing to meet the needs of users, who still suffer from many of the same old issues, along with some new problems that have cropped up more recently.
EBS rolls out mobile FX app
FX trading service EBS has launched Watch EBS, a new mobile app that is designed to show users the global spot FX market in as close to real time as possible.
NACHA Pushes for Same-Day ACH Payments with Three-Step Plan (March 31, 2014)
NACHA wants to help move the U.S. toward same-day ACH payments using a phased approach to replace today’s sluggish system that can take three to five days for electronic payments to clear.
Green Dot Shifts Cash Reload Strategy to Focus on Swipe (March 31, 2014)
Green Dot Corp. is in the midst of a national rollout of a swipe reload service aimed at making reloading cash onto a prepaid card more convenient, efficient and intuitive.
India’s Central Bank Tightens Prepaid Regs (March 31, 2014)
The Reserve Bank of India has updated its rules covering prepaid products, which it says will help combat money laundering and fraud.
What’s giving high-frequency traders the jitters?
What is the latest technological snag affecting high-speed trading performance? In a word, jitter – a major risk, particularly when carrying out arbitrage.
People on the Move: Greg Haney, CardLab Inc.
CardLab Inc., a Dallas-based provider of open-loop incentive and prepaid card products, announced that Greg Haney has joined the company as chief operating officer.
Company on the Move: Contact Solutions, Frost & Sullivan Award
Contact Solutions, a Reston, Va.-based provider of cloud-based customer self-service solutions, has been awarded the Customer Value Leadership Award for Best Practices Research on hosted interactive voice response solutions by business consulting firm Frost & Sullivan.
