Payments


Payments round-up: 13 October 2016

Make it lean, keep them keen. A round-up of events in the payments space. Nordea is leaving the Swipp collaboration and partnering with Danske Bank’s MobilePay platform in Denmark and Norway. The shared payment solution’s plan is a reaction to “new international players” who “regularly appear in the market”. Danske says it will begin converting […]

TransferWise connects to UK Faster Payments Scheme

TransferWise has “successfully” integrated into the UK’s Faster Payments Scheme (FPS) using ACI Worldwide’s tech at the back-end. As Banking Technology reported in August, TransferWise became the “first” tech firm to get direct access to FPS as technical partner to Raphaels Bank. Prior to that, ACI partnered with the same bank, opening up access to […]

MasterCard selects super six for fintech accelerator

Silicon Valley Bank and MasterCard have selected six start-ups to participate in Class 5 of Commerce.Innovated, a virtual accelerator designed to help commerce, payments and fintech start-ups grow their businesses. The six US start-ups will go through the four-month virtual programme and are in various stages of funding and development: Domuso, a payment financing platform […]

SIBOS Interview: Payments trends in EMEA

Alain Raes, CEO EMEA and Asia Pacific, Swift, discusses the main payment trends in Europe, including real-time and the Global Payments Innovation Initiative.

SIBOS Interview: The securities services industry

Bruno Prigent, Head of Societe Generale Securities Services (SGSS) and Mathieu Maurier, Global Head of Sales and Relationship Management discuss the global securities industry and SGSS’s plans for the future.

SIBOS Interview: Gerry Gaetz, Payments Canada

SIBOS Interview: Gerry Gaetz, President and Chief Executive Officer, Payments Canada discusses the modernisation of Canada’s payments system with Tanya Andreasyan, editor of Banking Technology.

MasterCard to buy French payment firm Stet?

MasterCard is believed to be mulling the acquisition of French payments processor Stet. MasterCard told Banking Technology it “does not comment on rumours or speculation”. Stet responded saying that “these are unfounded rumours” and that it “has no discussions of this type with MasterCard.” Stet was set up in 2004 and is currently owned by […]

Federal Appeals Court Declares CFPB Structure Unconstitutional

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Oct. 11 deemed the structure of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) unconstitutional because of it being led by a single director, calling the bureau a “gross departure from settled historical practice” in which independent agencies are led by commissioners or board members, according to the court’s decision.

CFPB Fines Navy Federal Credit Union $28.5 Million

The CFPB has fined Navy Federal Credit Union $28.5 million for improper debt collection action. That breaks down to $23 million going to victims and a $5.5 million civil penalty, the federal consumer agency said.

Chinese tourism fuels Alipay and Zapper payment partnership

Alipay has partnered with Zapper, the consumer insights and marketing platform, to grab a slice of the Chinese tourism market in the UK. Zapper says the partnership will allow over 250,000 Chinese tourists visiting the UK to pay using the Alipay app in over 1,000 locations nationwide. Rita Liu, head of Alipay EMEA, says merchants, […]

Applying Augmented Reality to an Omnichannel Retail Environment

Virtual reality (VR) has been grabbing headlines this year with major players across several industries entering the market. But there is evidence to show that augmented reality (AR) may be a more valuable platform in the years ahead. So what exactly is AR and what are the potential applications that could help take it from a small niche to a multi-billion dollar industry in just a few years?

Symantec reveals more hack attempts on Swift network

Symantec has found evidence that the Odinaff group has mounted attacks on Swift users, using malware to hide customers’ own records of Swift messages relating to fraudulent transactions. The tools used are designed to monitor customers’ local message logs for keywords relating to certain transactions. They will then move these logs out of customers’ local […]

Intense Industry Reaction Quickly Follows CFPB Prepaid Rules

The CFPB might have taken two years to release its final rules on prepaid accounts, but it took little time for payments industry players and observers to weigh in on them. Within a day of the rules’ release, which go into effect Oct. 1, 2017, prepaid services giant Green Dot Corp., the Independent Community Bankers of America (ICBA), the Consumers Union and the Network Branded Prepaid Card Association (NBPCA) all had issued official comments, covering the spectrum of support for the new mandates.

Wirecard Launches Prepaid Card for European Truck Drivers

A new European prepaid product from Wirecard will help truck drivers pay for repairs and fuel. The program, launched in Germany, involves Europe Net, a subsidiary of ADAC Truck Service. Its European Net Service Card also enables fleet mangers to add value to the card so that drivers can make emergency payments.

Vodafone, PayPal Team for U.K. Contactless Payments

Vodafone customers in the U.K. now can make NFC payments funded from their PayPal accounts via Android smartphones. A new deal between Vodafone and PayPal enables PayPal to be used as a funding source for transactions made with Vodafone Pay.

Facebook Co-Founder among Targets in Jumio Lawsuit

A shareholder of ID verification startup Jumio Inc. has sued company officials over alleged mismanagement and misrepresentation of the firm, which filed for bankruptcy in March 2016. In a lawsuit filed in Delaware, Bloso Investments Ltd., alleges that Jumio directors, including Facebook co-founder Eduardo Saverin, made deliberately misleading statements about the company’s prospects, duping Bloso into investing $5 million in Jumio.

Lloyds can hear a Pindrop with anti-fraud tech

Lloyds says it is set to become the “first” organisation in Europe to introduce new fraud prevention technology, helping protect its 30 million customers from telephone fraudsters. The patented “Phoneprinting”, developed by call centre fraud firm Pindrop, creates an “audio fingerprint” of each call by analysing 147 unique call features – such as location, background […]

MasterCard and SolarisBank partner for digital banking push

MasterCard and Berlin-based SolarisBank have teamed up to bolster their digital banking ambitions. SolarisBank has got principal membership status, and will now operate at MasterCard’s “highest issuer level”, with access to its entire product portfolio. Dr. Andreas Spengel, vice-president at MasterCard, says it is “excited by the outlook of working together with a young, visionary […]

Payments round-up: 10 October 2016

Wasting your time is a crime. Here’s a round-up of key events in the payments space. Absa has teamed up with South African start-up Walletdoc to let its Absa Rewards customers earn cash rewards each time they use Walletdoc to pay their monthly accounts. Walletdoc works by sending reminders when payments are due, notifying users […]

Handbag stars in Starling Bank debit card debut

“We have the licence, we have the technology, now we have the card.” New UK challenger bank Starling has got its first batch of debit cards as it continues to build its infrastructure. Like some kind of shopaholic’s symbolic frolic, the bank detailed its London shopping adventure with a blog post. This had a point […]

Sibos 2016: future proofing payments

The global payments industry faces more challenges than ever before – fiercer competition, more regulations, an increasing threat from cybercrime and new demands from customers. Thierry Chilosi, head of markets & initiatives, EMEA at Swift, talks to Daily News at Sibos about the steps market participants can take to future proof their payments infrastructure.

Fintech funding round-up: 6 October 2016

When time is tight, the reading can be light. A round-up of key events in fintech funding. US-based Payoneer has completed the first closing of a growth equity financing. Proceeds from the $180 million financing will be used to “accelerate global growth”. This year, the firm opened new offices in India, Japan and the Philippines, […]

Misys to float on London Stock Exchange

Misys plans to proceed with an initial public offering (IPO) on the London Stock Exchange in early November 2016. As Banking Technology reported in August, Misys – currently residing in the hands of US-based Vista Equity Partners – was understood to be gearing up for this IPO with a £5.5 billion float and appointed investment […]

Bank of Lithuania and Revolut team up for payments

Bank of Lithuania, the country’s central bank and regulator, has signed a memorandum of understanding with UK-based payments and fintech start-up Revolut. Revolut intends to set up a financial institution in Lithuania and obtain a banking licence. Bank of Lithuania will provide Revolut with access to its managed payment systems enabling cross-border payments in euro. […]

Kohl’s Launches Mobile Payments Tied to Private Label Card

Kohl’s on Oct. 5 launched a mobile payment option that “integrates the Kohl’s Charge private label credit card into the popular Kohl’s mobile app,” the retail chain said. Called Kohl’s Pay, the service enables some 25 million U.S. holders of that private label card to pay for in-store purchases directly from mobile devices.

Swift smart modules seek stronger security

Swift has published a series of eLearning modules as it ramps up its cybersecurity defences in the face of hacking threats. The SwiftSmart modules will help its customers operate their Swift environment “securely and in-line with best practice”. The move is also a “critical part” of its Customer Security Programme launched in May 2016. That […]

CFPB Includes Mobile Wallets in Final Prepaid Rule

The U.S. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) on Oct. 5 released its final rule on prepaid accounts, and the agency’s requirements, which go into effect Oct. 1, 2017, go well beyond plastic.

Mastercard Brings Selfie Payments to Europe

Say cheese! Or at least hold still. Mastercard is rolling out its pay-by-selfie service in a dozen European countries. The move follows a similar pilot in North America.

HSBC hits $100bn mobile payments mark for corporates

There’s glee and a spending spree for HSBC as over $100 billion in mobile payments have been made by its corporate customers. The bank says the $100 billion sum was authorised globally through the HSBCnet mobile corporate banking platform since its launch in 2011. The total transaction value of mobile payments has more than doubled […]

CFPB Issues Final Prepaid Rules; Expanded Definition Worries Industry

The U.S. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) on Oct. 5 released its final rule on prepaid accounts, a move that sharply expands the definition of prepaid—to the distinct displeasure of prepaid industry players. The new rules, which take effect Oct. 1, 2017, are quite similar to what CFPB had initially proposed, with provisions tweaked in the final rule, rather than major additions or deletions.

Standard Chartered customers taken for an Uber ride

This time we have a genuine Uber moment in fintech. Standard Chartered and Uber are partnering to offer the bank’s credit cardholders cashbacks on Uber rides. This is the “first ever multi-market partnership” for both of them. The deal is for six markets – Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia, Vietnam, India and the United Arab Emirates – […]

Merchant Lawsuit over Fraud Liability Shift Moves Forward

A federal judge has ruled that a lawsuit alleging payment networks colluded over fraud liability can go forward, denying the networks’ motion to dismiss the lawsuit. Filed in March 2016 in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California by two Florida retailers, the lawsuit accuses American Express, Discover, Mastercard and Visa of engaging in “a conspiracy” when shifting liability for transaction fraud to merchants that failed to upgrade their POS systems to accept EMV chip technology by Oct. 1, 2015.