TerraPay, a mobile-first international network, has bought UK-based Pay2Global Limited to boost its ambitions for European expansion in payments. Pay2Global is being rebranded as Terra Payment Services. In an outright purchase, Netherlands-based TerraPay, which is part of the Mahindra Group, has acquired 100% of Pay2Global for an undisclosed amount. Pay2Global is a digital international money […]
Massachusetts-based community bank, Randolph Savings Bank, has renewed its long-term contract with Fiserv for a host of back and front office solutions. The renewal was spurred on by the bank’s IPO. Randolph Savings Bank floated its shares in July. It also completed the integration of its earlier acquisition – First Eastern Bankshares Corporation and its […]
Traditionally there weren’t any obligations for financial institutions to provide complete information on all parties in a payment process. Today, it is quite a different story. The initiator and receiver are responsible for reporting account numbers, names and addresses of remitters. There are even cases now where regulators may prevent banks from processing transactions when […]
After a tumultuous nearly year-long span in which UniRush LLC was making headlines stemming from a major service disruption to its RushCard GPR product last October, the company announced Aug. 29 positive news in the form of a new app it says has best-in-class security features and a pharmacy program providing discounted prescription medications.
As China-based payments network UnionPay continues to grow its global acceptance network, Chinese students studying abroad can use UnionPay cards for tuition payments at more than 2,000 educational institutions outside mainland China, the network announced Aug. 29.
India-based online commerce platform Paytm soon could gain a $300 million investment from China-based e-commerce giant Alibaba and Taiwan-based microchip firm MediaTek, according to an Aug. 29 report in the Financial Times.
A new international network of fintech hubs aims to foster global cooperation for the development of fintech and give the emerging industry a collective voice. Dubbed the Global Fintech Hubs Federation, the new group was formed by Innotribe—the innovation arm of global financial network SWIFT—and Innovate Finance, a fintech industry organization.
The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) has released a consultation paper on proposed changes to the payments regulatory framework and establishment of a National Payments Council. Jacqueline Loh, MAS deputy managing director, says this is an “important step for MAS and the payments industry to co-create the future of Singapore’s payments landscape; one where payments […]
Unified Payments Interface (UPI), launched in April by the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI), is going live for 21 banks. UPI offers instant, online bank payments, and is seen as a major change to the Indian financial sector. It enables banks to provide real-time payments through QR code enabled addresses and offers device fingerprinting […]
Prepaid cards have gained popularity among U.S. consumers in recent years, with 63 percent of adults buying the payments device in the year preceding June, according to a new survey report from Mercator Advisory Group. That compares to 61 percent for the last survey report, and 56 percent for the year before that.
In the wake of the cyberattack that struck international financial messaging network SWIFT earlier this year, U.S. banking regulators say that they are assessing cybersecurity threats facing the country’s financial institutions and the controls in place to defend against attacks.
Seoul, South Korea-based Samsung Electronics recently announced that Samsung Pay had been launched a year ago, and that approximately 100 million unique transactions have been made using its m-wallet thus far.
Consumers enrolled in multiple, unrelated loyalty programs often experience confusion and friction when it comes to redeeming rewards. Some see coalition loyalty—platforms that enable customers to earn and redeem points across multiple brands and retailers—as the way to win.
Retailers are now operating in an era where convenience is key—and secure and simple payments have begun to take hold. Amy Parsons, vice president of global commerce at Discover, recently offered her insights into on-demand payment technology.
Welcome to the bundle. South Africa’s First National Bank has launched its own-branded smartphones as it looks to mobile banking growth. The ConeXis X1 and A1 phones will be available from 380 branches around the country and come bundled with FNB’s smartphone banking app. Jan Kleynhans, CEO of the FNB Consumer Segment, says the initiative […]
BNY Mellon, Deutsche Bank, ICAP and Santander have joined UBS and Clearmatics to advance their utility settlement coin (USC) concept, and plan tests in a real-market environment. USC is a digital cash model for payments and settlement. It will run on blockchain and be another rival to Bitcoin. The group plan to build on the […]
Qatar Islamic Bank (QIB) has launched a mobile app to identify and train people in the country to work in the private banking sector. Khalefa Al Mesalam, head of QIB Human Capital Group, says: “Through this mobile application, QIB aims to reach out to young talents and encourage them to work in Qatar’s banking sector. […]
It’s no secret that the financial services industry has tended to lag behind when it comes to adopting digital technology. Far from being leaders of innovation, banks are often stifled by lumbering IT systems and an inherent sense of caution when it comes to challenging the status-quo. With growing investment in the internet of things […]
The weakest gift card retailers, according to a report from Retail System Research published Aug. 23 that gave them each zero points, include Eddie Bauer, Costco, Walgreens, and Advance Auto Parts as well as quite a few quick-service restaurant chains, including McDonald’s, Denny’s, Wendy’s, Taco Bell, KFC and Chick-Fil-A.
The U.S. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB)’s proposal prohibiting financial services firms from including class action waivers in arbitration agreements has another critic: The Network Branded Prepaid Card Association (NBPCA) has sent a letter to the federal agency about the “negative” impacts the rule would have on the prepaid industry.
Walgreens on Aug. 22 became the first retailer to enable customers to earn loyalty points via NFC tap with Android Pay. The pharmacy and convenience giant’s Balance Rewards members now can load their rewards card onto Android Pay and hold their phone near the PIN pad to earn points when making a purchase.
Some members of big box retailer Costco received erroneous email messages Aug. 19 from Citi stating their Costco Anywhere Visa credit card account had been closed. The emails were intended to inform certain Costco customers that they couldn’t use their Costco Anywhere Visa cards because their memberships had expired.
If you’re curious, then it’s been fast and furious. Spending on UK contactless cards in the first half of 2016 has already outstripped contactless spending for the whole of 2015, according to the UK Cards Association. Some £9.27 billion was spent using contactless methods between January and June of this year, more than the total […]
SBI Ripple Asia has announced that a Japanese consortium of 15 banks in a new network will use Ripple’s blockchain technology for payments and settlement. Using Ripple, customers of the banks will get real-time domestic and cross-border payments, 365 days of the year. Initial participants include Bank of Yokohama and SBI Sumishin Net Bank (SBI […]
In the course of a recent active business day I observed myself carrying a multitude of financial instruments. I had to make a payment from my business checking account to a local government agency and I was reluctant to use my business debit card. Should I have chosen my credit card the agency charged an […]
Are payment processors for consumer financial service providers required to understand the complex regulatory regimes to which their clients are subject, and verify that clients are complying with those requirements?
Mobile payment service Chase Pay has landed a major new merchant partner, announcing a multi-year acceptance agreement with Phillips 66 that also will boost the fuel retailer’s mobile payments and loyalty integration. Under the deal, Phillips will accept Chase Pay at fuel pumps and convenience stores that operate under its Phillips 66, Conoco and 76 brands.
Using facial recognition to log into bank accounts could present security vulnerabilities, according to a security researcher.
WEX Inc., a South Portland, Maine-based provider of corporate payment services, will kill its my Travel Cash prepaid card program in the U.K. as of Oct. 4. Shuttering my Travel Cash is part of WEX’s plan to concentrate on its corporate payments products and services, according to the company.
Square Inc. could be moving closer to its long-expected expansion into Europe. The San Francisco-based mobile payments company posted three openings for positions in the U.K. and Ireland on jobs board Indeed.com. The openings were for a compliance analyst and communications manager, both based in London, and a technical customer support rep, in Dublin.
Banking Technology, ACI Worldwide and Nets have joined forces to survey the global market about the highs and lows of its current journey towards real-time payments. From individual institutions’ readiness to key market drivers, obstacles and fraud concerns, and everything in between – survey participants from across the globe share their views.
Merchant Bank of Sri Lanka (MBSL) has signed for Fiserv’s Signature back office system and the Teller front-end solution. MBSL has around 100,000 customer accounts and 49 branches. Last year, it merged with its two subsidiaries, MBSL Financial Services and MBSL Savings Bank. Fiserv says the bank needed new technology that was “flexible, scalable and […]
South Korea’s SK Telecom and Hana Financial Group have formed a joint venture (JV) agreement to develop and launch a mobile financial services platform. The firms say the deal combines SK Telecom’s mobile technologies and big data analytics with Hana Financial Group’s experience in financial products and mobile financial services. Kim Jung-tae, chairman of Hana […]
You can tell cartels to go to hell if you’re Apple. The firm has responded strongly to three of Australia’s big banks’ plans to team up for negotiation deals on digital wallet access. According to the Australian Financial Review, the request from the Commonwealth Bank of Australia, National Australia Bank and Westpac to “collectively negotiate […]
Catch up on Banking Technology’s top five fintech stories of the week – all in one place! New core banking project for Temenos in Canada Exclusive. Credit union in British Columbia goes for T24. Swift slow on strong security say execs “Took their eye off the ball.” Volksbank pioneers NCR Innovation Experience Room An “experimental […]
Payments provider Ingenico has partnered with Alipay to give Chinese tourists visiting Europe the ability to pay via their Alipay app at any store using the Ingenico solution. With this partnership, Alipay will be imbedded into Ingenico’s in-store payment gateway, which will allow acquirers across Europe to integrate and offer Alipay acceptance to their merchants. […]
One of South Africa’s largest health insurers, Discovery, is a step closer to selecting a core banking system for its new bank, Banking Technology understands. Discovery went public on its plans to launch a brand new full-service retail bank in South Africa last year. As part of this ambition, it acquired the majority stake in […]
There is no question that consumers continue to embrace card-based payments as an alternative to cash and checks, none more so than the millennials. But cash will continue to have a role.
Meant to overcome the challenges of tokenization, payment account reference (PAR) promises more complexity and cost—and will require more attention from payments providers.
Mobile wallets already offer incentives to consumers based on spending. What about offering rewards based on money management?
