Service Gives Bitcoins for Starbucks Card Balances, New Virtual Currency Hits Market (Jan. 30, 2014)
Starbucks gift card holders now can redeem the unused balances on their cards for Bitcoin.
PayTech
Senate Committee Sets Hearing on Consumer Data Security (Jan. 30, 2014)
The Senate Banking Committee will hold a hearing next week on safeguarding consumers’ financial information in the wake of recent data breaches at several major U.S. retailers.
SIX “greatly regrets” debit card mishap in Switzerland, Liechtenstein
SIX Payment Services has apologised after a technical glitch caused a number of debit card transactions in Switzerland and Liechtenstein to be accidentally booked twice on 22-23 January. Following the disaster, SIX managed to reverse 99.93% of the double bookings, with the remainder due to be reversed individually in the coming days. On average SIX […]
StoreFinancial Teams with Twins for RAN Gift Card (Jan. 28, 2014)
Pitchers and catchers might not report to spring training until mid-February, but StoreFinancial already is thinking about baseball.
BitInstant CEO Charged with Money Laundering in Silk Road Scheme (Jan. 28, 2014)
ederal prosecutors have charged the head of digital currency exchange BitInstant with conspiring to commit money laundering and operating an unlicensed money transmitting business.
Special Delivery? Agency Says Postal Service Should Consider Prepaid (Jan. 28, 2014)
The United States Postal Service’s Office of Inspector General has once again suggested that the Postal Service should consider providing financial products, including prepaid cards.
European Department Store Giant Goes Contactless (Jan. 28, 2014)
Madrid-based El Corte Inglés, Europe’s largest department store chain, this year plans to upgrade the majority of its POS terminals to accept contactless payments from NFC-enabled cards and handsets.
Russian firm streamlines customs payments with BPC systems
Russian online customs specialist firm Multiservice Payment System has begun using a new system designed by Swiss tech firm BPC Banking Technologies, which promises to make customs easier by combining a web portal with an e-declaration service via POS terminal.
WSJ: Apple Laying Groundwork for Mobile Payments Platform (Jan. 27, 2014)
Apple Inc. is making plans to launch a mobile wallet service for its iPhone, iPad and iTunes users, according to a Jan. 24 Wall Street Journal report.
CFPB Looks to Supervise Largest Nonbank International Money Transfer Providers (Jan. 27, 2014)
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has proposed a rule it says would enable the agency to oversee larger, nonbank, international money transfer providers to ensure they are following the CFPB’s new protections for consumers sending money abroad.
Stripe Lands $80 Million in Funding, Now Valued at $1.75 Billion (Jan. 27, 2014)
Payments processor Stripe Inc. has secured $80 million in a new round of investment that valued the 4-year-old startup at $1.75 billion.
UnionPay Taps Rev for Global Prepaid Push (Jan. 27, 2014)
Austin, Texas-based prepaid processor Rev Worldwide has partnered with Chinese payment card giant UnionPay to “grow prepaid market opportunities around the world.”
How many sides can you put on a coin?
There are two sides to every coin, but with Bitcoin those sides simply could not be farther apart. Its promise is extraordinary: for those afraid of inflation, it is gold redux, while for those who hate exchange rates, it is a way to pay internationally. For merchants it is a way of avoiding high transaction fees and for former Presidential hopeful Ron Paul, it is the destruction of the US Dollar.
T-Mobile Enters Prepaid to Serve Unbanked Customers, Increase Stickiness (Jan. 23, 2014)
T-Mobile USA Inc. this week became the first major U.S. mobile carrier to enter the GPR prepaid arena with Mobile Money by T-Mobile, a new smartphone application and accompanying Visa prepaid card.
Report: New Case to Give iPhone Users Access to NFC, Isis (Jan. 23, 2014)
With the Isis mobile wallet now live across the U.S., iPhone users remain unable to use the wallet to make contactless in-store purchases due to the handset’s lack of NFC capability.
Toyota to Offer Mobile Car Payments through Pingit (Jan. 23, 2014)
Toyota owners in the U.K. can make car payments via mobile device, now that the automaker has signed on with the Barclays Pingit mobile payment app.
Clear2Pay doubles headcount at Scottish testing facility
Clear2Pay is expanding its facilities in Scotland with the hire of 29 new staff, at its Dunfermline offices, bringing the headcount there to 50. The expansion is supported by a £250,000 Regional Selective Assistance grant from Scottish Enterprise. Kimball Felix, chief of staff at Clear2Pay, said, “In addition to our payments technology, we offer a […]
Blog: Intelligent Interactions Improve Customer Service, Boost Loyalty
While there are now a dozen ways to build and maintain relationships with customers, many organizations often still treat these channels as separate silos, creating a disjointed customer care experience. By sharing data across channels, you’re more likely to have less frustrated, more loyal customers.
UniRush Lands Industry Veteran Rick Savard
Recently minted CEO of UniRush LLC Rick Savard sees a bright future for the Cincinnati-based provider of the prepaid Visa RushCard.
Viewpoint: The Future of HSAs
How employees are using their accounts can have a dramatic impact on an employer’s overall HSA strategy and benefit plan. As we approach the 10th anniversary of the enabling legislation for HSAs, the industry, employers and brokers/agents all have the opportunity to move HSAs forward with the use of insightful reporting and analytical tools.
People on the Move: Matt Rosenburg and Charles Potts, Ingo Money
Ingo Money has announced Matt Rosenburg as the Atlanta-based technology and solutions provider’s chief information officer.
People on the Move: Todd Anderson, GiftCards.com
GiftCards.com, a subsidiary of Pittsburgh-based Wolfe LLC, has appointed Todd Anderson general counsel.
People on the Move: William Lamar Jr., Sionic Mobile Board
Sionic Mobile, an Atlanta-based m-commerce company providing mobile gifting, payments and rewards, named William “Bill” Lamar Jr. to its board of directors.
Blog: 2014—Diversification for E-Money
2014 is shaping up to be a big year for e-money and those players with the ability to spot opportunities (think loyalty and mobile), and the agility to react to them, will increase market share and thrive.
“Unbanked banks” suffer from tougher KYC rules
Senior transaction banking executives have called for a political discussion to resolve the issue of emerging market access to banking services caused by the reduction of the correspondent banking services network.
Better late than never: businesses should still sharpen up for SEPA
While many large organisations have already planned and delivered their SEPA compliance, smaller and mid-sized firms have woefully underprepared for the deadline. Banks and payment organisations need to be prepared for a certain amount of confusion and resistance from UK customers who may not understand the reasons for the change, and may be reluctant to put the necessary changes into effect.
Durbin/NACS Oral Arguments: Appellate Court Expresses Skepticism
A ruling from the circuit court could be issued within the next 30 to 60 days.
Mobile Solutions Can Assist Underbanked Consumers
According to a report from the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston, innovative mobile banking features can help underserved consumers obtain safe, secure and convenient options that foster financial inclusion.
Retailer Group to Appeal Card Fee Settlement
In the latest development of the ongoing credit card interchange fee dispute between merchants and Visa and MasterCard, the National Retail Federation (NRF) has appealed a $5.7 billion settlement with the payment card networks.
Growth under threat from new Basel III, EMIR, Dodd-Frank regs
Regulation is driving a structural shift away from capital markets and investment banking towards transaction banking – but even this hint of opportunity could be under threat, according to senior financial services panellists speaking at the BAFT IFSA conference in London this week.
U.S. Appeals Court Panel Hears Arguments on Interchange Rate-Cap Dispute (Jan. 21, 2014)
Three judges for the U.S. Court of Appeals in D.C. convened last Friday to ask questions of lawyers representing debit card issuers, the Federal Reserve and merchants, as the panel weighs the Fed’s appeal of a lawsuit vacating its rule capping debit interchange rates at 21 cents in 2011, in accordance with the Durbin Amendment in the Dodd-Frank Act.
Border Arrests Believed to Be Linked to Target Data Breach (Jan. 21, 2014)
The Target stores data breach that occurred during the holiday shopping season and affected millions of Target shoppers continues to make headlines as police made two arrests at the Texas-Mexico border.
Visa’s V.me Nears Full Commercial Rollout, Adding Countries and Merchants
As the push to minimize steps for consumers inputting card data when making online and mobile purchases gathers steam, competition among digital wallets is intensifying.
Getting personal: banks must brace for change
Major global banks need to grasp social networks, cloud computing, user-generated content, personalisation, contextual information and gamification if they are to maintain a competitive edge and stay connected with customers. But they also need to ensure their innovations are transmitted thoroughly to all employees, according to panellists at the BAFT IFSA conference in London on Monday.
Five Minutes with First Data
Paybefore chats with First Data’s Ben Love to get some insight into the company’s recent moves, as well as the future of payments.
ECB says February SEPA deadline can be met
The European Central Bank has released statistics that it says show that migration to the Single Euro Payments Area “gathered pace strongly” in December and urged market participants not to relax in their migration efforts. Earlier this month the European Commission announced a six-month extension past the 1 February deadline by which time all payments […]
PayPal Unveils Plans to Streamline Payment Process Online and In Stores (Jan. 16, 2014)
PayPal is vowing to make it simpler for consumers to use its brand.
MasterCard Makes another Stride in Africa with Ecobank Licensing Pact (Jan. 16, 2014)
MasterCard has finalized a licensing deal with pan-African banking group Ecobank under which the bank’s customers will have access to MasterCard’s payment solutions.
As Customers Move to Mobile, BofA to Shutter More Branches (Jan. 16, 2014)
Bank of America may close up to 150 branches by the end of the year as the bank’s heavy investment into mobile banking continues to bear fruit, the company said.
TD Bank Launches Teen Card (Jan. 16, 2014)
TD Bank, the Cherry Hill, N.J.-based subsidiary of The Toronto-Dominion Bank, has launched a Visa-branded GPR prepaid card for teenagers—giving them the ability to make purchases in stores and online and enabling parents to track spending and set limits.
