Viewpoint: Better Disclosures Are Good for Consumers and Industry
Legislators and companies, such as MasterCard, are introducing standards for prepaid card disclosures that help us all.
Analysis
Key technology issues facing banks
Countless articles have been written about the challenges and issues facing the banking sector globally over the last few years and it is a brave pundit that tries to pin these down to a handful of sound bites,
Industry Views: M&A on the Rise
We asked M&A experts to tell us what to expect in the coming months, specifically around prepaid, mobile and emerging payments. They all agreed on one thing: Change will continue to be the norm.
Viewpoint: Inside the EC Payments Package and the Aggressive Timeline for Passage
The European Parliament’s ECON Committee vote on the “Payments Package” has resulted in inconsistent legislative text that differs significantly from the EC draft proposal. With an aggressive timeline for passage, including an April plenary vote, the payments industry needs to make its voice heard on the potentially harmful impacts of the proposed changes.
Editor’s Note: Keeping What Makes You Great
We may not be the shiny new thing like mobile, but prepaid has a role to play in the new era of payments because it’s accessible to every consumer. For prepaid businesses to stay relevant and take their place in this evolving market, they must hold onto the innovative spirit and keen focus on solving problems that sparked the industry more than 15 years ago.
Why Yahoo’s malware attack is hitting banks hard
At the end of last year, Yahoo was hit by a malware attack. It affected over two million clients, mainly in Romania, Great Britain, France, Italy and Spain, putting their personal data at risk. Upon visiting the website between 27 December and 3 January, users received advertisements, some of which were malicious and infected users’ devices without even a click.
Znap puts merchants at heart of mobile commerce revolution
Mobile payment isn’t about reinventing the wheel – it’s about making merchants and customers’ lives better by establishing a relationship built on knowledge and trust, according to mobile payments platform Znap.
LEI update: hidden costs prevent enthusiastic take-up
Until the world has a definitive Legal Entity Identifier, we are going to have to recognise that piecemeal adoption brings with it significant hidden costs in validating, enriching and mapping for regulatory purposes. If the total number of registered market participants is meant to include all the corporates that trade FX forwards, we are far short.
Banking on you – how wearable tech could change finance
Something big is happening to the internet (and, no, I am not talking about Bitcoin though that would be a fascinating topic for another time). In a nutshell, it’s changing into something you wear rather than go to, writes Aman Narain, global head of digital banking at Standard Chartered.
Raincoats, taxis and the future of banking
What do taxis, the weather, mobile wallets and raincoats have in common? They are all potential variables in determining a person’s daily spend – and they provide a great opportunity for banks to use data to save customers money, according to Aman Narain, global head of digital banking Singapore at Standard Chartered.
Blog: Tackling Financial Literacy Is a Team Effort
Wherever you sit in the industry, you can help the end users of prepaid products (or future users) by supporting basic financial education. The key is to make it fun.
Blog: From Atoms to Bits: The Digital Age of Money
As we move to digitize everything, the transition to digital wallets hasn’t been an easy feat. O2 recently announced it would discontinue its mobile wallet and despite efforts by industry heavyweights, mass adoption of a digital/mobile wallet still is proving elusive.
Executive Profile: One on One with Mark Putman, First Data
As a startup veteran with five companies under his belt, Mark Putman never foresaw his future as an executive for a large company. Today, he oversees the prepaid business at First Data Corp., one of the world’s largest payments processors, as senior vice president of prepaid solutions.
Innovators’ Spotlight: Planet Payment
A global multicurrency processor is breaking down borders to make global shopping a local experience.
Predicting the future in financial services
As data volumes continue to grow, being able to make greater use of the information enhances competitive advantage. The financial services industry is taking steps towards using predictive analytics technology to do just that.
Cashing out: Ontario mobile payment infrastructure is on the money
Canadians are in a hurry to get rid of their cash – at least as a method of payment, nor are they content with the contactless tap-and-go cards currently in use; they are anxious to replace cards with contactless smartphone technology, writes Aaron Rosland, senior economic counsellor for the Government of Ontario, Canada.
It’s 2014 … time to change the way you think about payments
Ten years ago business-to-business payment options were pretty limited: cheques dominated, and organisations only had the option of 3-day BACS payments or expensive CHAPS transactions for high value, same day payments.
Mobile vulnerabilities require banking apps rethink
Concerns are emerging over the failure of some mobile banking providers to address security risks. According to a recent review of 40 home banking apps from the world’s top 60 banks, nine out of ten apps had serious security vulnerabilities.
Estimating Libor damage past – automating index surveillance future
In the wake of scandals involving manipulation of market indices, can statistical learning theory be used to detect and fix anomalies in Libor and other market indices?
Blog: Beyond the Receipt: New Tools Combined with Old Offer Consumer Behavioral Insights
While receipts offer tantalizing indirect evidence of past activities, they tell us only a very modest amount about the habits, personalities or needs of the purchaser. For merchants, it’s where consumers are going next—and why they’re going there—that really matters.
Blog: Online Gamblers and Digital Wallet Providers Cash In
More than 125,000 online gambling accounts were created in less than a month, according to New Jersey’s Division of Gaming Enforcement. As one of three states where online gambling is now legal, the Garden State presents significant opportunity for digital wallet providers.
Blog: The Top Four Mobile Musts in 2014
From smartwatches to voice-recognition capabilities, 2014 promises to be mobile’s best year yet. And these and other mobile trends will influence payments and financial services innovation.
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.
A regulatory trigger for risk transformation
The Basel principles for effective risk management offer a chance to transform information management that should not be missed.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
Standards: the middle way
The financial services sector may be heavily regulated, but it is poorly standardised. A British Standards Institute-led initiative to drive more adoption of voluntary standards could reap considerable benefits for the industry.
Capital markets on a firmer footing for 2014
Following the tumultuous change that came in the wake of the subprime crisis, capital markets firms have yet to regain a strong foothold but 2014 is showing increasing evidence of a shift to a higher gear.
Innovators’ Spotlight: Womply
San Francisco startup offers merchants a data-driven business insights platform that does the heavy lifting for them.
Industry Views: Trends and Resolutions for 2014 (Part 1 of 2)
To kick off 2014, we asked payments industry thought leaders in the U.S. and Europe to reflect on the year that turned out not to be the “Year of NFC” and to look ahead at what will dominate prepaid and emerging payments for the next 12 months. We also asked them what the industry’s New Year’s resolutions should be.
Industry Views: Trends and Resolutions for 2014 (Part 2 of 2)
Industry thought leaders weigh in on priorities for 2014.
Executive profile: One on One with Mark Schatz, Stored Value Solutions
When he can’t sleep at 2 a.m., Mark Schatz, managing director of Stored Value Solutions, will get up and run eight miles. Akin to a phoenix, running invokes renewed clarity that supports his mission in managing one of the companies that gave birth to the closed-loop gift card industry.
Editor’s Letter: Starting Off the New Year Right
Now that you’re back in the office and once again glued to your computer screen, you’ll continue receiving the industry news, insights and analysis you’ve come to expect from Paybefore. But it won’t exactly be business as usual for Paybefore this year.
Blog: Prepaid Program Potential: 3 Steps Banks Must Take to Engage Millennials
To attract the key millennial demographic, banks must look to prepaid and mobile.
