IRS Breach Exposes Data of 100,000 Taxpayers (May 27, 2015)
Cybercriminals accessed the personal information of about 100,000 U.S. taxpayers in an attack on the IRS’s systems, the agency confirmed this week.
Analysis
Innovators’ Spotlight: Mozido
If you’re tracking the hottest topics in payments, watch Mozido. Over the past several months, the Austin, Texas-based mobile wallet provider has been investing, hiring and expanding in sync with the most important industry trends.
CBEST will help UK financial institutions lead in IT security
Banks will always be targeted by criminals and cyber attacks have become their most vulnerable attack surface. It isn’t simply about technology. It extends through people and process, and reaches from the central infrastructure all the way out to end users conducting online banking or financial transactions on laptops, tablets or smart phones. Because banks and financial firms have very large and sophisticated systems, this means that end-to-end security is notoriously difficult
CFPB: Final Prepaid Rule Coming in January ‘16 (May 26, 2015)
The CFPB’s final rule for prepaid financial products will come in January 2016, according to the agency’s latest rulemaking timetable.
CFPB Updates Consumer Complaint Manual (May 26, 2015)
The CFPB this month updated its Company Portal Manual, which explains in detail the process when consumer complaints are submitted to the bureau as well as the procedures companies must follow if they wish to respond to a complaint.
MasterCard Issuers Reject Proposed Deal in Target Breach Case (May 26, 2015)
A settlement between MasterCard and Target stemming from the retail giant’s 2013 data breach has been scrapped after failing to earn approval by enough MasterCard-issuing banks.
Things ain’t what they used to be
According to Cisco there are 15.5 billion devices connected to the internet, ranging from routers to telemetry devices, power grid controllers, smartphones and perhaps the odd toaster. Other than in retail situations this so-called Internet of Things does not immediately seem to have much to do with the financial services industry. John Bates thinks otherwise, and sets out why in his recent book Thingalytics.
Compliance and digital innovation needn’t be mutually exclusive
Regulatory compliance might be a fact of life for every financial institution, but it can be very challenging when competitive pressures come in to play. Software-based services are often now the primary means of contact between a company and its customers; IT is no longer a back-office support function
Mobile banking: what consumers really want
The growth of mobile money has been a steep upward curve and looks set to continue – Juniper Research predicts that there will be one billion mobile banking users worldwide by the end of 2017, up from 590 million in 2013. A recent Forrester report predicted that purchases on mobile devices would double by 2018, as even more people become comfortable buying online and retailers create more user-friendly mobile experiences
Banking at a digital crossroads
The Banking industry is at a digital crossroad as it faces both a wave of technology companies poised to disaggregate every facet of the business and a changing consumer that is increasingly demanding that banks products match the state-of-the-art digital services they are receiving from other industries
Viewpoint: One-Size-Fits-All Regulation of Prepaid Accounts Does More Harm than Good
The NBPCA supports the CFPB goal of protecting consumers, but the proposed rule doesn’t differentiate between prepaid products that serve different needs.
Five common pitfalls of financial crime prevention
Financial services organisations can, and do, prevent many criminal acts through adequate controls, proper supervisory procedures, and sophisticated detection and incident management technology. However, there are a handful of shortcomings that derail the best preventive measures and result in negative news headlines and increased regulatory scrutiny for individual employees and entire institutions alike
Mobile banking users to double by 2020
On the background of a recent study revealing that UK mobile banking users are set to double to 32.5 million by 2020, banks need to tailor their customer experience models heavily towards mobile devices, with the fundamental focus on creating a “mobile-first” strategy, if not the more radical “mobile-only” strategy
Viewpoint: SKU-Level Gifts and Promotions Get Personal
Emerging technologies, consumer preferences and e-commerce innovation are giving rise to the next evolutionary step for gift cards: SKU-level rewards and promotions.
Empowering transactions: from bank regulation to customer-centric innovation
Regulation has the potential to accelerate the payments innovation sparked by the evolution of internet and mobile technologies. By giving customers the reassurance that payments can be made safely and efficiently, regulation allows providers to develop new and exciting ways to serve customers
Blog: All I Want for Christmas is an Apple Watch
Reactions to the new Apple Watch range from ecstasy to ennui for most consumers, but here’s why this product might be a holiday hit.
Blog: The Amazing Race: Differentiating the In-Store Experience
Retailers are changing the shopping experience. It’s quite clear that the future will be a far cry from your mother’s shopping trip, and payments providers will have to innovate to keep up.
Denmark Seeks to Eliminate Most Cash Transactions (May 13, 2015)
The Danish government wants to eliminate the obligation of accepting cash for certain retailers—expediting a move toward a cashless economy some government officials believe will reduce costs and increase productivity for affected businesses.
The next phase of outsourcing: change the bank with digital transformation
Financial services firms have always faced market volatility, but new challenges are forcing most to rethink their traditional operating models in favor of outsourcing. The expanded use of outsourcing models will help improve revenue and create new business opportunities
The road towards a better bank
The financial sector is a slow mover in innovation, however no single industry is leading the way in the Digital Identities economy. Banking is one sector that can take advantage of Digital Identities to better develop customer experience given the nature of the engagement and relationship between Banks and their customers. Banks fulfil a very […]
EU Lawmakers Reach Informal PSD2 Agreement (May 7, 2015)
European lawmakers, following years of discussion, believe improved competition, more innovation and enhanced consumer protections in cross-border payments will be the result of an informal agreement on a revised Payment Services Directive (PSD2) reached this week.
FinCEN: Virtual Currency Exchangers Must Comply with BSA, AML Rules (May 7, 2015)
Ripple Labs Inc. acted as a money services business and sold its virtual currency without registering with FinCEN.
Data integrity and post-crisis regulatory reform
The integrity of data in capital markets – be it, for example, price data, trade facts, collateral balances, or other key business information – has long been a fundamental concern of technologists and business stakeholders. But how do we define integrity?
National velocity checking: the answer to MSB money laundering?
Anti-money laundering legislation cuts through the Gordian knot of bringing cases against companies at a stroke – it doesn’t require a ‘controlling mind’. In fact, it almost demands the opposite. A UK-wide system of velocity checking would go further in combating crime and protecting Money Services Businesses.
Bringing the channels together
Can the right combination of self-service device management, cash management and end-to-end transaction monitoring enable banks to embrace enterprise-wide performance awareness, and take a holistic approach to managing their multi-channel banking environments?
Hotsourcing: the third way for sell-side ops
A decade ago, one of the driving factors behind outsourcing was reducing cost and headcount. However, with the growing regulatory and compliance burden, firms are increasingly becoming more cautious about outsourcing.
Demystifying mobile payments
As mobile handsets become more prevalent as a tool for retailers, for payments, loyalty and engaging with consumers in and out of the store, security of sensitive data becomes increasingly more important.
Viewpoint: UDAAP Priorities and the CFPB’s Project Catalyst Initiative
Notes from a business law meeting with speakers from the CFPB, FTC and New York Department of Financial Services.
Beating the (IT) budget blues
By following simple principles and incorporating solid processes and tools the IT budgeting and forecasting process can be a source of value to both the IT department and the businesses it serves
Mergers and acquisitions – don’t forget your back-end
Worldwide, mergers and acquisitions in the banking sector have become increasingly common. According to the Bank of America, European bank mergers in particular are back on the agenda for the first time in many years as financial institutions are beginning to make strategic choices about what areas of their business are core.
Blog: Secure Elements vs. Cloud-Based HCE: What’s More Secure for NFC Mobile Payments?
In the debate over the secure element approach vs. HCE for mobile payments, Apple Pay introduces a new wrinkle with its hybrid solution, proving this isn’t a duel: All that matters is the pass/fail test for security.
Blog: Not Seeing a Tree for the Forest
Advocates of same-day ACH tout the increased functionality and economic benefits of speeding up payments. But a deeper look at the process reveals more of its hidden risk-mitigation benefits.
House Bill Likely D.O.A. Because of Proposed Funding Cap on CFPB (April 23, 2015)
Spoiler alert: A bill approved yesterday by the U.S. House of Representatives basically will be dead on arrival as President Barack Obama has vowed to veto any legislation that tries to touch the purse strings of the CFPB.
Real-time payments: the next frontier
Customer driven innovation is powering change in the payments industry. Real-time Payment infrastructures (RTP) – whether they are called Faster Payments, Immediate Payments or same-day clearing – are now a reality, with many countries having implemented RTP functionality, and others actively considering the imminent roll-out of RTP projects in their domestic market.
Cloud opens up democratisation of retail investor services
Cloud services are opening up possibilities for the retail investor to create individual customised funds in a way that was previously the preserve of the super-wealthy. Coupled with regulation in the UK such as RDR, the effect has been to make new business models possible, according to Michael Newell, chief executive at InvestYourWay.
Viewpoint: Canada’s Regulation of Mobile Payments: Merchant Protection at the Cost of Innovation?
Some of the most significant changes to Canada’s Code of Conduct for the Credit and Debit Card Industry affect the rights of merchants regarding mobile and contactless payments. Will the updated Code have the unintended consequence of disincenting investment in and adoption of innovative payment technologies in Canada?
Out with the old in New Orleans?
Innovation in a mobile real-time world will be to the fore in the discussions as the US payments industry gathers at Nacha Payments 2015 to consider the opportunities and challenges against a background of rapid technological and regulatory change. What can those embarking on project learn from those who have already been there?
The digital wealth opportunity
With the recent pension reforms opening up a plethora of investment options, financial services providers need to capitalise on the opportunity to create a value-led digital customer proposition
Senate’s Tax Refund Fraud Bill Takes Aim at Prepaid (April 16, 2015)
Several U.S. senators used income tax season to promote new legislation that takes aim at program providers that enable consumers to receive their tax refunds on prepaid cards.
Canada’s Code of Conduct Expands to Include Mobile (April 15, 2015)
Canada’s Financial Consumer Agency this week has released amendments to Canada’s code of conduct for credit and debit card transactions that extend to mobile payments.
