CFPB’s Spring Agenda Includes General Use Cards (May 28, 2014)
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau could release its long-awaited rules for GPR prepaid cards next month.
PayTech
Raphaels Hits the Road with RAC Prepaid Card (May 28, 2014)
U.K.-based Raphaels Bank has signed on to deliver what the bank is calling the first prepaid loyalty card program in the roadside recovery industry for the RAC, a British automobile association.
MasterCard Report: Prepaid, Mobile a Winning Combination for Financial Inclusion (May 27, 2014)
Prepaid cards could be a key entry point for financial inclusion—especially when combined with mobile phones, according to a new report from MasterCard that studied the underserved population in six countries within the Asia-Pacific, Middle East and Africa (APMEA) region.
Kalixa Expands Its Market; Intuit Picks up the Check (May 27, 2014)
Processors continue to get scooped up in acquisition deals this month.
Yoyo Strings $5 Million Investment, Expands U.K. Campus Presence (May 27, 2014)
The European mobile payments market continues to draw the interest of investors, with London-based mobile payment and loyalty app Yoyo landing $5 million in seed investment.
People on the Move: Michelle Lehouck, Bell ID
Bell ID, a global provider of smart chip management solutions, has appointed Michelle Lehouck EMV product director for its U.S. division.
People on the Move: Matthias Höllerl, DIMOCO
Matthias Höllerl has been promoted to vice president of sales, mobile messaging, at DIMOCO, a European mobile payment and messaging provider.
People on the Move: Drew Freeman, Net Element Inc. Board of Directors
Net Element Inc., a mobile payments and transactional services provider, has appointed Drew Freeman to the company’s board of directors.
People on the Move: Naveen Surya and Vishwas Patel, Payments Council of India
Naveen Surya, managing director at ItzCash Card Ltd., is serving a two-year term as Payments Council of India chairman as well as chairman of the prepaid issuers working committee. Vishwas Patel, CEO at Avenues India Pvt Ltd., is serving two-year terms as PCI vice chairman and chairman of the merchant aggregator and acquirers committee.
People on the Move: John Walsh, SightSpan
SightSpan Inc. CEO and President John Walsh and John Walsh, former host of “America’s Most Wanted” recently met at a Charlotte Mecklenburg Police Foundation event in Charlotte, N.C.
Payment portfolio migration – avoid the pitfalls and reap the benefits
The benefits of changing a payments portfolio over to a service provider with a modern and flexible platform are inherent and far outweigh the downside of staying with a provider whose solution is a poor fit.
InComm Banks on Prepaid Platform to Bolster New M-Wallet Service (May 22, 2014)
A new mobile wallet platform from InComm is capitalizing on the company’s prepaid expertise to offer wallet providers a multitude of features, possibly giving InComm a competitive boost and signaling a shift in the prevailing business model. T
Global NFC SIM Shipments More than Double (May 22, 2014)
Despite skepticism that the path to widespread NFC-based mobile payments is in the SIM card, global shipments of NFC-enabled SIM cards more than doubled last year, and the SIMalliance expects such growth to continue.
APEX Europe Wraps Up in Marbella, Spain (May 22, 2014)
Following sessions on Tuesday that featured a keynote presentation by Guido Mangiagalli, Visa Europe’s head of prepaid/core payments; a deep dive into PSD2 and MIF regulations for prepaid, mobile and payments providers by TrustEu Affairs’ Monica Monaco; and a merchant panel addressing interchange and regulation from their side of the table, APEX Europe wrapped up yesterday with panels and individual speakers addressing the opportunities in emerging payments.
CARTES: Gazing into the Payments Crystal Ball
Don’t get bogged down by existing technological limitations—they will inevitably fade with the march of innovation—and the future will be beyond what you can imagine.
Viewpoint: What I’ve Learned about Prepaid and Velcro Pants
Year one as the head of prepaid for Discover has led to some interesting lessons, including the importance of thinking beyond practical boundaries to create unique, workable solutions.
Blog: I Want My EMV
EMV chip card technology that helps block counterfeit card fraud at the POS is coming to the U.S., and last week I was one of the first on my block to experience it.
What next for the ATM?
Given that bank customers are unlikely to increase significantly their usage of ATMs and now that opportunities to deploy large numbers of additional dispensers are limited, what does the future hold for the ATM and where does its next phase of growth lie?
Viewpoint: 4AMLD and Its Impact on the Prepaid Industry in Europe
If proposed changes to simplified due diligence go through as drafted, it will drive out a whole section of the prepaid market from Europe.
Paybefore Reveals Best-in-Category Winners for European Awards in Spain
Paybefore today celebrated the winners in its 2014 Paybefore Awards Europe competition and revealed those selected as Best in Category at the All Payments Expo Europe in Marbella, Spain.
At APEX Europe: Mobile’s the Thing (May 19, 2014)
At the launch of the All Payments Expo Europe today in Marbella, Spain, speakers invariably turned to the topic of mobile, with strong emphasis on (and statistics to support) meeting the needs of merchants participating in mobile payments services and the consumers who use them.
MasterCard Bulks up Processing Muscle in India with ElectraCard Services Acquisition (May 19, 2014)
A little more than a month after announcing 40 percent prepaid growth in Asia-Pacific, Middle East and Africa, MasterCard is buying Pune, India-based prepaid processor ElectraCard Services Private Ltd.
Google Play Adds PayPal in Bid to Boost Sales (May 19, 2014)
While Google and PayPal are competitors in the mobile wallet space, the companies are cooperating on an initiative to enable Google Play purchases to be paid for with PayPal in 12 countries, including the U.S., Canada and Germany.
Apple Set to Take Bite out of Payments? (May 19, 2014)
Apple’s recent deal with China’s UnionPay on a pair of contactless payment initiatives may be a sign that the tech giant is ready to make a major move into NFC payments, including equipping the next generation of the iPhone with NFC technology.
Pay Magazine – Spring 2014
The Genius Issue: Ideas, Technology, People Remaking Reload Networks; 2014 Paybefore Awards: Innovation in 20+ Categories; What Keeps Regulators Awake at Night
CFPB’s Online Privacy Disclosure Option Promises Big Saving but May Fall Short for Prepaid Providers (May 15, 2014)
GPR and payroll providers may be eager to take advantage of what the CFPB estimates will be $17 million in annual saving across the financial services industry. The proposed rule, however, may not be a real option for prepaid providers.
EMV Preparation Continues with PULSE Deal, New EMV Industry Services (May 15, 2014)
More pieces of the U.S. EMV quilt were stitched together this week with announcements from PULSE, MasterCard, FIserv and CPI Card Group.
Isis Touts 600,000 Monthly Account Activations, as Pace Doubles (May 15, 2014)
Incentives may be working for Isis, which says consumers activated an average of 20,000 mobile wallets per day over the past 30 days. But activations don’t necessarily equal continued usage.
CARTES: For Mobile Wallets, Survival Means Adaptation (May 15, 2014)
“Winners” will be those platforms that are flexible enough to accommodate the breakneck pace of technological advancement.
RBI Pulls Back on Biometric POS Mandate, Launches Prepaid Cashout Pilot (May 15, 2014)
The central bank has pulled back on a mandate requiring new POS and ATM terminals to include biometric authentication. However, it’s also enabling prepaid providers, for the first time, to offer cashout at biometric terminals.
Swedbank begins Baltic ATM revamp
Swedish regional bank Swedbank is planning to roll out new ATM applications for 206 branches across the Baltic countries of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania. The company will also upgrade more than 150 of its ATMs as part of a new multi-channel banking strategy.
CARTES Keynote: PayPal’s Gauthier on Omnichannel Opportunity (May 14, 2014)
It’s never been more important for merchants to find out what matters to consumers and figure out how to fulfill those needs, Patrick Gauthier, PayPal’s head of emerging services, told attendees at CARTES Secure Connexions America yesterday.
Vantiv Swallows Mercury Payment Systems in $1.65 Billion Deal (May 14, 2014)
Mercury Payment Systems Inc.’s IPO plans came to a screeching halt when Vantiv Inc. on May 12 announced a deal to acquire Mercury for $1.65 billion.
First Data: Spending Gains Momentum in April; Prepaid Dollar Volume Rises 6.9 Percent (May 13, 3014)
Same-store spending on credit, debit, EBT, closed-loop prepaid cards and checks, gained 4.1 percent in April over last year, and prepaid spending showed the highest dollar-volume increase at 6.9 percent compared with credit (4.3 percent) and signature and PIN debit (4.5 and 4.1, respectively). Check volume fell 2.7 percent.
StoreFinancial Lands Strategic Investment to Bring in Payments Veterans
Paybefore Award-winning processor and program manager StoreFinancial is adding two payments veterans to its management team and focusing on growing its corporate payments business after a material equity investment from a Kansas City-area private investor group.
Square Wallet Out, Square Order In as m-POS Pioneer Tweaks Strategy (May 13, 2014)
Square, no stranger to experimentation, this week surprised observers by pulling its Square Wallet from the Apple and Google stores three years after its launch and introducing an order-ahead app for cafes and restaurants.
Apple Adds EMV Features to its In-Store m-POS System (May 13, 2014)
Apple Inc. is joining the push to accommodate EMV cards in its stores with its EasyPay m-POS, which uses a special iPhone case made by VeriFone that employees may use for customer checkout.
FIS Taps Cloud for EMV Instant-Issue Service (May 12, 2014)
The U.S. may be one of the world’s last markets to migrate to EMV, but the cool new EMV tools available for issuers could be the silver lining to waiting so long.
In Money Transfer Push, Facebook Finds Plenty of Friends (May 12, 2014)
Facebook has already conquered the social media sphere—and now there are signs the company is seeking to capitalize on its global ubiquity and massive user base to make a splash as a money transfer service, recently partnering with financial service providers on transfer initiatives around the globe.
People on the Move: Nathalie Reinelt, Aite Group
Nathalie Reinelt has joined Aite Group as an analyst on the retail banking team.
