M&A Roundup: Mozido, CorFire, Payment Data Systems, Akimbo Financial (Dec. 22, 2014)
Industry experts earlier this year predicted abundant M&A activity in the payments industry, and they are being proved correct right to the very end of 2014.
PayTech
EU Officials Agree to Cap Interchange Fees (Dec. 18, 2014)
Members of the Economic and Monetary Affairs Committee and European Union Council negotiators yesterday agreed to cap the interchange fees on cross-border and domestic card-based payments, ensuring uniform rules across the EU.
Holiday Spending Growth Down, But Consumer Confidence Appears Stronger (Dec. 18, 2014)
Store openings on Thanksgiving Day and the typical headline-seeking weekend deals by retailers helped somewhat during the traditional kickoff to the holiday shopping season this year.
Toronto, Jakarta Transit Payment Systems Going Electronic (Dec. 18, 2014)
Transit systems throughout the world continue to adopt electronic payment systems—the latest among them Toronto and Indonesian province Jakarta.
Innovators’ Spotlight: SUBWAY (Franchise World Headquarters LLC)
The mega-chain goes mobile with many partners and a mobile app of its own with two key ingredients—convenience and loyalty.
Viewpoint: Strategic Priorities for Success in Today’s Prepaid Environment
Changing times call for new priorities. Clients want a partner with a nimble organization and a flexible and feature-rich technology stack, but not at the expense of business and operational reliability.
Viewpoint: The Power of Push Marketing with Good Data and Analytics
Financial services providers have amassed mountains of data about customers, but what’s it worth? Real value comes from the analysis and timely application of knowledge through push marketing campaigns and ongoing product improvements.
Blog: A Soon-to-Be Must-Have: Biometrics Authentication for Customer Service
Apple Pay’s Touch ID application has pushed biometrics payments authentication into the mainstream. But biometrics authentication goes beyond fingerprint sensors, and voice biometrics authentication is one of the best ways to thwart identity fraud.
BAML boosts EMEA GTS team with internal promotions
Bank of America Merrill Lynch has made a series of internal promotions in its EMEA Global Transaction Services team.
CFPB Calls for Greater Transparency in Campus Card Agreements (Dec. 16, 2014)
The CFPB is calling for greater transparency from colleges and financial institutions when they enter agreements to offer prepaid or debit products to students.
First Data, Verifone Reduce Merchants’ Data Breach Exposure (Dec. 16, 2014)
First Data Inc. and Verifone are helping U.S. merchants reduce their exposure to large-scale consumer payment data breaches and expedite merchant acceptance of EMV-enabled credit and debit cards.
Apple Making it Easier for PayPal, Google Wallet Users (Dec. 16, 2014)
Apple in recent weeks has become somewhat more accommodating to consumers who use PayPal or Google Wallet. For example, consumers in the U.S. and U.K. now may use PayPal when making purchases on Apple’s online store.
LevelUp Completes NCR Silver Integration, Rolls Out Gift Card Feature (Dec. 16, 2014)
NCR Corp. today announced the NCR Silver POS system now includes a feature enabling merchants to easily add LevelUp, the mobile payments and loyalty network, to customer payment options.
Fingerprint authentication for mobile finance moves closer with FIDO
Widespread use of fingerprint authentication for financial transactions on mobile devices could start taking off from early next year as Bank of America, Wells Fargo, Google, Samsung, Lenovo, Microsoft, Alipay and others adopt a new authentication standard through their joint project, the FIDO Alliance, which has just published its specifications and launched its first server.
Amex Launches Savings Research, Sharing Findings with CFPB (Dec. 15, 2014)
American Express has launched a research pilot to study what marketing tactics and behavioral triggers can convince cardholders to save using its Serve prepaid account software platform.
Fiserv: Millions of Consumers Want Mobile Bill Pay, Options (Dec. 15, 2014)
The growth in consumer popularity of mobile bill pay features continues unabated as 27 million U.S. households with access to the Internet are paying at least one bill from their phones, an increase of nearly 70 percent compared with 2013, according to The Seventh Annual Billing Household Survey from Fiserv.
Rev Launches Travel Card in India with FX Provider (Dec. 15, 2014)
Paybefore Award-winning Rȇv Worldwide is continuing its focus on multicurrency travel cards with its latest launch in India.
Are Driver’s Licenses Headed for Mobile Wallets? (Dec. 15, 2014)
If Maxwell the talking pig can show a police officer his proof of Geico insurance on a smartphone, why not a driver’s license?
Seasonal Gift Card Sales Headed for Record; Online and Digital Sales Propelling Growth
Overall holiday sales figures may be a mixed bag so far this year, but gift card sales for the season are on track to hit news sales peaks in the U.S. and the U.K., aided by an uptick in online sales, plus growing popularity for digital gift cards, new data suggest.
CFSI Study: Underserved Market Worth $103 Billion; GPR to Maintain Double-Digit Growth (Dec. 11, 2014)
The financially underserved market in the U.S. generated approximately $103 billion in fee and interest revenue in 2013, based on consumer usage volume of $1.3 trillion in financial products and services, according to a new study from the Center for Financial Services Innovation (CFSI) and Core Innovation Capital.
Blade Brings Bitcoin to Debit Cards; Microsoft Accepts Bitcoin Payments in U.S. (Dec. 11, 2014)
After a strong showing in consumer bitcoin spending on Black Friday weekend, Blade Financial yesterday launched what it’s calling the first B2B payment processing platform that extends traditional debit card programs to bitcoin businesses.
People on the Move: Anabel Perez, NovoPayment
Anabel Perez, CEO of prepaid processor and program manager NovoPayment, has been selected as one of this year’s Endeavor Entrepreneurs, which recognizes entrepreneurs who have become role models and give back to their communities as mentors and investors for the next generation of innovators.
Financial services disruption – why I’m backing the banks
For banks, a race to remain relevant is on. In the past few weeks, Lloyds Banking Group has announced its intention to double-down on digital banking, closing branches and cutting costs. In the US, BBVA Compass announced that its agreement with startup Dwolla to offer real-time payment facilities to customers makes it the first mainstream bank to open its technology platform to digital developers like Dwolla
People on the Move: Jane Thompson and Richard Bard, Blackhawk Network Holdings Inc. Board
Blackhawk Network Holdings Inc. has announced that Jane J. Thompson and Richard H. Bard have been elected to its board of directors effective Oct. 6, 2014, when the board expanded to 10 members.
People on the Move: Marc West, Fiserv Inc.
Fiserv Inc. has announced that Marc West has been named president of the company’s digital channels business.
People on the Move: Edward Boyle, Daniel Delshad, Duane Jacobsen and Steve Williams, Blade Financial
Blade Financial has launched what it says is the first B2B payment processing platform extending traditional debit card programs to bitcoin businesses.
People on the Move: Mark Colyer, Metropolitan Commercial Bank
New York City-based Metropolitan Commercial Bank has appointed Mark Colyer vice president of the prepaid card group.
People on the Move: Bob Sacco, MyECheck, Inc.
MyECheck Inc., a Folsom, Calif.-based provider of electronic check solutions for Internet and mobile payments, has named Bob Sacco national account manager.
People on the Move: Dannell Mastrean, TSYS
TSYS has announced the promotion of Dannell Mastrean to group executive of major accounts.
USPS Adds Blackhawk Network Gift Card Malls (Dec. 10, 2014)
Blackhawk Network this week announced a new distribution deal with the U.S. Postal Service, introducing the company’s gift card malls to select post offices in time for the holiday season.
U.S. and Europe Focus on Faster Payments, Quicker Access to Funds (Dec. 10, 2014)
NACHA, the Herndon, Va.-based electronic payments association, and the European Central Bank (ECB) independently are taking steps to speed up the payments process with the goal of same-day settlement.
Bitcoin Transactions Notch $296 Million over Holiday Weekend (Dec. 10, 2014)
During the feverish shopping on Black Friday and Cyber Monday, even bitcoin had its mad moment.
Digital Gift Cards to Get Boost from Multichannel Distribution (Dec. 9, 2014)
With gift cards expected to be a top seller this season, according to a survey by the National Retail Federation, Sprint, GiftCards.com and CashStar are making it even easier for consumer to do their holiday gift card shopping online and on their phones.
Monitise to Develop Mobile Products and Services for Virgin Money (Dec. 9, 2014)
U.K.-based mobile money provider Monitise plc has signed a 7-year agreement with Virgin Money to develop digital banking products and services for Virgin Money customers.
Russia Begins Testing National Payment System Next Week (Dec. 9, 2014)
Russia is scheduled to begin testing its new National Payment System (NPS) with eight banks next week, and the platform is scheduled to become fully operational in the first quarter of next year.
Keep it personal – supporting customer-centricity with relevant financial products and services
Since the beginning of the global economic crisis, the financial services industry has faced challenges like never before. Headlines around bankers’ bonuses, PPI miss-selling and Libor manipulation have led to a lack of trust from consumers. In response, traditional banks need to join the new generation of financial service providers and their customers in their new natural habitat – online and on mobile.
UK Faster Payments scheme sets out to expand reach
Faster Payments, the UK payment clearing system, is planning to expand access to more payment service providers in the coming year. The organisation has set out its plans in a new Whitepaper, which explores possible cooperation with the Bank of England to develop new settlement models for non-bank payment service providers.
More Must Reading: FFIEC Updated BSA/AML Exam Manual (Dec. 8, 2014)
The FFIEC’s recently updated BSA/AML Examination Manual is emphasizing—as it has in the past—that the buck stops with issuing banks in terms of ultimate responsibility for BSA/AML compliance for prepaid access products, regardless of agreements or contracts with other players in the value chain.
Funding Roundup: Stripe, Dynamics Inc., Atom Bank (Dec. 8, 2014)
Millions of dollars keep flowing into the payments industry as investors recently showed support for advanced payments cards from Dynamics Inc., Stripe’s e-commerce solutions and a digital-only Atom Bank.
RBI Small Bank Guidelines to Foster Inclusion (Dec. 8, 2014)
The Reserve Bank of India has issued guidelines for licensing small finance banks in the private sector to, among other objectives, better meet the needs of unbanked and underbanked populations and to provide credit to small businesses, farmers and small industries.
