N.J. Governor Chris Christie (R) signed into law a bill that eliminates the collection of consumer ZIP code information for gift cards purchased at the POS, putting an end to a protracted legal battle over unclaimed property rules in the state.
Fear of fraud is the main factor slowing the adoption of smartphone-based payments among UK consumers, though a third believes that credit and debit card payments will no longer be the preferred method of payment in 2020.
Finland’s central securities depository Euroclear Finland has just completed the first stage of a major project to completely replace its securities processing infrastructure. The CSD says the move is part of its preparations for T2S, the European Central Bank project to harmonise Europe’s post trade infrastructure.
Swiss post-trade specialist SIX Securities Services is planning to establish a central trade repository for derivatives transactions in Switzerland, using the London Stock Exchange’s UnaVista platform. The platform is being built to allow Swiss customers to report under the Swiss Financial Market Infrastructure Act, which is currently in parliamentary consultation.
Technology consultancy Capgemini has formed a global alliance with First Data to develop payment software based on First Data’s VisionPlus and AccessPlus solutions. The pair say that they expect to begin delivering new solutions in the second quarter of this year.
A renewed push by a group of 11 European countries could see a controversial Financial Transaction Tax introduced across the EU in less than 12 months, with harmful effects on securities markets and extraterritorial repercussions – even in countries which have not signed up, such as the UK.
Apple Pay is a huge catalyst, not only for Apple but also for Android and host card emulation (HCE), First Annapolis’ Lee Manfred said during a keynote at the Smart Card Alliance Payments Summit. He urged issuers and merchants to view Apple Pay as a tool to build their own customized mobile strategies.
MasterCard continued its expansion in India today, with the official opening of the payment network’s new Technology Hub in the city of Pune.
The U.S. migration to EMV is well underway in advance of the October 2015 EMV network liability shift, with EMV card manufacturers shipping 185 million EMV cards last year, up more than 500 percent from 30 million in 2013, the Europe-based cross-industry Smart Payment Association announced today.
Green Dot is considering expanding the financial services it provides to include what Chairman and CEO Steve Streit describes as “modern credit,” with an eye toward using transactional data for underwriting.
The value of all cryptocurrency transactions will more than half this year, falling from $71 billion in 2014 to just over $30 billion. The decline was attributable to the combined impact of exchange collapses, Bitcoin theft and regulatory concerns.
SmartStream Technologies has acquired the assets of IBM’s Algorithmics Collateral solution and will add it to its existing solutions for the automation of the end-to-end post trade lifecycle, rebranding it as TLM Collateral Management. The system provides collateral lifecycle automation for buy- and sell-side institutions, custodians and asset servicers, large and small.
The U.S. payments card industry is on a “critical path” to EMV card migration over the next eight months but several challenges remain, Kimberly Lawrence, Visa’s senior vice president, global corporate initiatives, said today during the kickoff presentation at the Smart Card Alliance’s Payments Summit in Salt Lake City.
A new report from Ingo Money offers evidence to support what many industry observers have long maintained: Offering cardholders robust reload capability is key to driving loads and retention.
New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman wants to increase access to traditional banking services by getting banks to change their account-opening criteria. But broader access to checking and savings accounts doesn’t mean consumers won’t continue to seek out alternatives, including prepaid cards, which may have more features and fewer fees, according to industry observers.
Miami-based YellowPepper has closed a $19 million round of Series C funding to expand its mobile wallet in Latin America, where mobile money services are growing by 53 percent.
Lebanese commercial bank Al-Mawarid has begun a bank transformation project focused on mobile and online banking using the FusionBanking Essence Digital software from Misys.
Technology hiring is on the up, with employment within the industry forecast set to grow at 2.19% this year, nearly five times faster than the UK average, according to the 2015 Salary Guide from specialist recruiter Robert Half.
Italian banks are preparing for T2S, as Europe seeks to reform its cross-border trading infrastructure and bring down barriers between EU countries. The preparations are driving smaller regional banks to make deals with larger global banks as they prepare for implementation in June.
Bolstered by a nationwide rollout in U.S. Walmart stores, Green Dot Corp.’s GoBank mobile bank account showed strong gains during Q4 2014, with monthly deposits up 600 percent and total debit card spend growing nearly tenfold, according to Green Dot’s latest earnings report.
Google this month extended its Gmail-based money transfer feature to the U.K., marking the search giant’s first P2P foray outside the U.S. If successful, the move could help Google expand awareness of Google Wallet internationally before Apple Pay makes its expected move into the U.K. and other global markets, observers say. Apple Inc. CEO Tim […]
Swiss private banking group Julius Baer has chosen Temenos for a major core banking system replacement project intended to progressively modernise its front and back office systems globally.
The NBPCA has hired Brad Fauss as its executive vice president and general counsel and promoted Brian Tate to vice president, government relations.
US Commodity Futures Trading Commission Commissioner J. Christopher Giancarlo has condemned the CFTC’s implementation of swaps trading regulation reforms, describing its approach as highly over-engineered, disproportionately modelled on the US futures market and biased against both human discretion and technological innovation.
In a Jan. 27 letter to U.S. Rep. Sean P. Duffy (R-Wis.) and several other members of Congress, CFPB Director Richard Cordray said the agency would give the lawmakers’ request for a 60-day extension to the comment period for its prepaid NPRM “serious consideration.” But the rest of the letter suggests that the agency feels 130 days since the proposal went up on its Website will be adequate for stakeholders to comment.
Critics of the DOJ’s controversial Operation Choke Point, which encourages financial institutions to scrutinize clients that operate certain types of businesses, such as payday lenders and firearms sales, may welcome the latest news from the FDIC.
The blazing sales rate of Apple Inc.’s new iPhones during the final quarter of 2014 shattered the company’s own expectations, and Apple Pay’s rollout was “extremely positive,” helping drive historic revenues, Apple’s CEO Tim Cook told analysts this week.
China-based e-commerce retailers have a new way to accept online payments.
Banks in North America are ramping up IT spending on retail banking services and digital channels this year, with total IT spend expected to reach $64.8 billion by 2016, according to a new report by analyst firm Celent. The figures represent a 4.5% increase this year, as financial institutions increasingly turn to external software provider and specialists to bolster their abilities.
BNY Mellon and State Street have announced a collaboration with Eurex Clearing, the subsidiary of Deutsche Börse Group, to enhance the Eurex service to meet the needs of beneficial owners, and explore expanding its geographic reach into the US.
Mozido, a cloud platform mobile payments and retail engagement solutions provider, this week announced it has named Ron Hynes, as president global markets.
Debit/ATM network PULSE has unveiled a new corporate logo and acceptance mark.
The CFPB has announced three new additions to its senior leadership team.
eBay Inc. has announced the appointments of Perry Traquina and Frank Yeary to its board of directors.
U.S. Rep. Patrick McHenry (R-N.C.) has been named by House Financial Services Committee Chairman Jeb Hensarling (R-Texas) to serve as the vice chairman of the full committee for the newly seated 114th Congress.
Marc Winitz has joined payment card processor i2c Inc. as the company’s chief marketing officer.
Mercury Payment Systems, a Vantiv company that provides payments technology and services for small and midsize businesses, has received two awards for its customer service.
paysafecard, a global provider of prepaid online payment methods and member of the international Skrill Group, has hired Jan Marc Külper as the company’s vice president of business development.
Payments services and processing provider PreCash Inc. has promoted Blair Jeffrey to chief operating officer.
Senate Banking Committee Chairman Richard Shelby (R-Ala.) has announced the incoming chairs of the Senate Banking Committee’s subcommittees.
