News


People on the Move: Gary Daniel, Allied Payment Network (April 2013)

Allied Payment Network, a Fort Wayne, Ind.-based provider of online bill payment services to the financial industry, has announced that Gary Daniel has joined the company as executive vice president and board member, bringing more than 45 years of experience to the firm. Daniel has held management and executive positions at several companies providing data […]

North America drags feet on big data says Celent

Despite its potential, the vast majority of financial services firms have still not implemented big data tools, according to new research conducted in North America by analyst firm Celent.

Bloomberg builds twitter feed for financial services

Bloomberg has added real time twitter feeds to its Bloomberg Professional service so that market participants can use twitter updates from corporations, executives, governments, media outlets and other sources to help make investment decisions.

Fiserv Launches Mobile Deposit Capture for Prepaid with Check Guarantee (April 4, 2013)

Fiserv Inc. is the latest to offer mobile deposit capture for prepaid cards, with a new program targeting prepaid card processors that includes a check-guarantee service so cardholders may receive funds immediately instead of waiting several days for checks to clear. Fiserv’s Prepaid Source Capture, based on the remote deposit capture it has offered banks […]

Visa Europe Adds Second Processing Partner for U.K. Digital Wallet (April 4, 2013)

Payments processor Global Payments Inc. will support Visa Europe when it launches its V.me digital wallet in the U.K. this spring. The country’s third-largest card payments processor, Global Payments joins WorldPay as processing partners for the U.K. version of the wallet, which launched a pilot with bank partner RBS late last year and is expected […]

iKaaz Marketing NFC-Based Mobile Card Readers in India, Africa (April 4, 2013)

As competition among mobile merchant acceptance services in India grows, merchants seem to be responding to the new technology. Bangalore-based iKaaz says that within three months of launching its NFC-based card reader for merchants, the company is processing 800,000 transactions monthly. The iKaaz NFC Reader, available for US$20, plugs into any mobile phone and enables […]

Nintendo to Roll Out ‘Interactive’ Prepaid Cards in Japan (April 4, 2013)

Video game giant Nintendo will launch a series of prepaid cards in Japan that feature characters from the popular Super Mario franchise. The cards will be available in monetary denominations of 1,000 yen (US$10.40), 2,000 yen (US$20.81) and 3,000 yen (US$31.21), and will be available starting in late April from convenience stores and other retailers […]

Chi-X Australia appoints Fildes CEO

Australian alternative trading system Chi-X Australia has appointed John Fildes as its new chief executive, taking over from Peter Fowler on 1 May.

Nasdaq OMX acqusition targets US bond market

Nasdaq OMX Group is to acquire bond platform eSpeed from BCG for $750 million in a move that highlights the increasing tendency for large stock exchanges to diversify as capital markets revenues from equity trading continue to decrease.

Competition stirs ATM revolution

A new generation of ATMs that offer customers more personalised services will provide a core tool for increasing levels of banking competition, according to a new report by business consultancy Navigant.

ING Bank names new CIO

Dutch bank ING has appointed Ron van Kemenade as its new CIO. Van Kemenade has 20 years of experience in the financial services and online sectors. Previously CIO of ING in the Netherlands, the promotion will see him CIO for the entire ING Bank. Van Kemenade joined ING in 2003 as Internet manager at Postbank […]

Standard Chartered poaches corporate finance head Burnett from UBS

Standard Chartered has appointed Peter Burnet as its regional head of corporate finance for northeast Asia. In his new role, Burnett will cover project and export finance, mergers and acquisitions advisory, structured trade finance, financing solutions and equity capital markets.

Finland’s Alandsbanken adopts SunGard risk management tools

Nordic bank Alandsbanken has chosen risk management tools from SunGard, which it says will help the bank to comply with new financial regulations. SunGard’s Ambit Risk and Ambit Performance products will be used by the bank to manage interest rate and liquidity risk and help the bank keep track of its balance sheet.

Networks Make Their Case as White House Weighs Cross-Border AML Rules (April 2, 2013)

With government officials considering a FinCEN anti-money laundering rule that would require consumers to report when they transport prepaid cards, along with cash and/or monetary instruments, with a value of more than $10,000 into or out of the country, representatives from three payment card networks went to the White House to request the rule be […]

Digital River adds paysafecard to Online Shopping Checkout Menus (April 2, 2013)

Online merchants using Minneapolis-based Digital River Inc.’s e-commerce platform may now add paysafecard, a European-based prepaid electronic payment option, to their consumer checkout menus, the companies said. Paybefore Award-winning paysafecard, founded in 2000 in Austria, provides prepaid payment services for more than 450,000 European and U.S. merchants in 33 countries. Adding paysafecard “makes online purchasing […]

Ukash to Debut Cash Withdrawal Service (April 2, 2013)

London-based prepaid voucher provider Ukash is rolling out a new service that will enable customers to turn their vouchers back into cash. Set to debut later this month, the Cash Withdrawals service lets users turn their game winnings or Ukash transaction change into cash at more than 24,000 PayPoint-enabled retailers throughout the U.K. Previously, Ukash […]

Report: Global M-Payment Development Favors No Single Technology Yet (April 2, 2013)

Mobile payments are evolving at different rates around the globe, with Asia leading other regions including Latin America, Europe and North America in growth. However, progress is uneven and it remains unclear which payment technology will prevail worldwide, according to a new report from Amsterdam-based payments consulting firm Innopay. In Japan, for example, contactless payments […]

MasterCard Signs MOU with China’s Alibaba Group (April 1, 2013)

Consumers and businesses inside and outside of China may have enhanced online payment options now that Chinese online commerce giant Alibaba Group and MasterCard have signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to work together on e-commerce. In addition to enhancing e-commerce, the companies said key goals of the MOU include working to help combat intellectual […]

CFSI Report Outlines ‘Next Chapter’ in Govt. Benefit Programs (April 1, 2013)

Prepaid cards represent “the next chapter” of electronic government payments, according to a new report from the Center for Financial Services Innovation (CFSI) and the Hudson Institute, which outlines ways to make benefit disbursement cards even more beneficial to recipients. One approach to improving benefit cards is by increasing the choice of card products available […]

Western Union, VTN Launch Mobile Money Transfer Service in Nigeria (April 1, 2013)

A new money transfer service is providing Nigerians with a way to manage and access their Western Union remittances via their mobile phones. VCASH subscribers can use the service, which was launched last week by Western Union Co. and Nigerian mobile payment operator Virtual Terminal Network, to transfer individual Western Union remittances up to US$300 […]

Hungary to Begin Mobile Payments Rollout in September (April 1, 2013)

Hungary this fall will roll out a uniform system for paying transportation costs via mobile phone. The National Mobile Payments System will be run by Nemzeti Mobilfizetési, a state-run company, while various mobile payment providers will act as resellers, according to a report in the Budapest Business Times. The platform initially will enable mobile payments […]

Is Visa Europe for Sale? WSJ Thinks So. (March 28, 2013)

Reports have swirled for the past week or more that the European banks that own Visa Europe might soon exercise an option to sell the organization to U.S.-based Visa Inc. and set up a new network of their own. Although Visa Europe members may be driving the sale, taking control of the European network could […]

i2c Adds Multipurse Budgeting Feature to Payments Platform (March 28, 2013)

Redwood City, Calif.-based payment processor i2c Inc. has added enhanced features to its payments platform that enable users to budget spending by using multiple purses within one account. i2c’s platform, known as MCP, enables companies to launch and manage card-based, virtual and mobile payment products to their customers. With the new features, i2c clients can […]

Interac Demos Canada’s First NFC Debit Transaction at Toronto McDonald’s (March 28, 2013)

Canada’s national ATM and debit network Interac this week announced the completion of the nation’s first NFC mobile debit transaction in a demonstration at a Toronto McDonald’s restaurant. The transaction showcasing the contactless EMV Interact Flash technology was conducted with an NFC-ready BlackBerry smartphone linked to a RBC Royal Bank customer’s bank account through mobile […]

Mizuho adopts Basel III compliance toolkit as rules tighten

Japan’s Mizuho International has adopted the common reporting, financial reporting and liquidity coverage ratio modules of Wolters Kluwer’s Basel III toolkit, which is designed to help banks cope as regulators tighten the screws on the banking sector’s capital requirements.

CME Group partners with MarkitServ for OTC FX clearing

US derivatives giant CME Group and OTC trade processing service MarkitServ have connected to support clearing for OTC FX transactions, ahead of new regulations in the US and Europe on the central clearing of OTC contracts.

Omgeo adds banking troika to board

Post-trade services provider Omgeo has appointed Edward Hazel of Goldman Sachs, Richard Taggart of State Street and Susan Cosgrove of the DTCC to its board of managers. The Omgeo board members are responsible for representing the interests of all Omgeo’s clients as decisions about strategy, governance and operations are made. Hazel is the global co-head […]

Oakland ID/Prepaid Card Fills Dual Needs for Underserved (March 2013)

By Adam Perrotta, Assistant Editor Oakland, Calif., residents who lack bank accounts and U.S. government-issued photo IDs now have an option for electronic payments and identification. While several U.S. cities issue identification cards for residents who need an ID, the program’s backers say the Oakland City ID Prepaid MasterCard is the first to also act […]

Japan Exchange Group wields axe to slash £60 million from costs

Japan Exchange Group has set out plans to slash 8.5 billion Japanese yen (£60 million) from its annual operating costs by 2015 – representing 15% of the firm’s overall budget – as the exchange seeks to revitalise its equities and derivatives markets and take on its competitors.