New Mobile Money Service Reaches Peru’s Unbanked
Peru’s new nationwide mobile money network has launched with the goal of bringing 5 million of the country’s unbanked citizens into the financial system over the next five years.
Mobile
Grocery Shoppers with Gift Cards Prefer Online Rebates
A Blackhawk study finds that grocery shoppers with gift cards prefer larger online rebates than smaller instant discounts at checkout. The study also examines which mobile apps top shoppers’ lists.
Canada Sees Surge in Mobile, Contactless Payments
Canada’s payments system is undergoing a rapid transition, with mobile P2P, e-wallet and contactless transactions on the rise, according to a report from the Canadian Payments Association.
Innovators’ Spotlight: PaySwag
Retailers have long recognized the importance of customer engagement to drive sales and retain customers. But Reno, Nev.-based PaySwag is proving the power of engagement to improve results in a somewhat unexpected sector—bill payments.
MasterCard, SVB Select Four Startups for Accelerator Program
Four more startups have been selected for the Commerce.Innovated. program. The companies represent the fourth class chosen by MasterCard and Silicon Valley Bank as part of a program to help startups get their products and services off the ground.
Russian Lawmakers Want to Ban Bitcoin
Bitcoin continues to encounter hurdles as its supporters try to facilitate the digital currency’s mainstream acceptance. Though certain states and countries are welcoming bitcoin, or permitting it with certain provisos, Russia is considering a ban.
Visa Aims to Boost Commerce Products with Outside Developer Help
Visa wants to strengthen its commerce offerings by opening up its technology treasure chest to software developers bent on improving consumer experiences. The payment network has launched Visa Developer, an “open platform that gives application developers access to Visa’s payments technology, products and services.”
Hackers Target Gyft, Neiman Marcus Customer Data
Cybercriminals continue to target payments providers and retailers, with Gyft and Neiman Marcus among the latest firms to announce separate data breaches. The attacks highlight two major data security issues facing financial providers and retailers: third-party security and the migration of fraud to online accounts as a result of enhanced POS security brought about by the arrival of EMV.
Western Union Gains Access to More than 660 Million Consumers in Viber Deal (Feb. 4, 2016)
Western Union continues to extend its digital reach with access to approximately 664 million users of mobile messaging app Viber, which enables its customers to send free text messages, photos, videos and make free calls with its push-to-talk capability, among other features.
Pin4 Cardless ATM System Plans Big Expansion (Feb. 4, 2016)
Pin4, a cardless ATM withdrawal system, could expand to some 70,000 U.S. cash machines by the third quarter of 2016, up from approximately 15,000 in the first quarter of 2016, says CEO Richard Witkowski.
Innovators’ Spotlight: Poynt
Electronic payment options for consumers are proliferating, and shoppers expect merchants to accept the full gamut of form factors. But for retailers—especially small and midsize enterprises (SMEs)—it can be tough to keep up. That’s where Poynt comes in.
P2P Lending Gains Ground in U.K. (Feb. 2, 2016)
P2P lending in the U.K. is a booming business that’s doubled in size since 2014 and approximately £2.20 billion (US$3.16 billion) lent to consumers in 2015.
Mobile ATM Withdrawals Coming to BofA, Wells Fargo, Chase (Feb. 1, 2016)
Apple Pay is on its way to thousands of ATMs across the country, as Bank of America and Wells Fargo reportedly are working on integrating the mobile payments service into their ATMs. Meanwhile, Chase soon will roll out ATMs that offer cardless withdrawals via the bank’s mobile app.
Viewpoint: Mobile Wallet Myth-Busting Starts Now
For those of us in prepaid, combating misrepresentation of our products in the media is nothing new. A recent news story claiming banks are leaving customers on the hook for fraud if they use a mobile wallet shows there’s plenty of work to do for new payment methods.
National Australia Bank Launches an Android Pay Mobile Payments Tool (Jan. 26, 2016)
National Australia Bank launches a mobile payments service for devices that run Google’s Android operating system. The launch of the Android Pay service comes as Apple Pay fails to find a way into the country.
Electronic payment volumes and security fears rocket
A survey of more than 3,700 IT security practitioners from more than a dozen major industry sectors found 54% of those firms surveyed had a security or data breach involving payment data, on average four times in past two years. The research, independently conducted by the Ponemon Institute on behalf of digital security firm Gemalto, also […]
Raphaels, VocaLink Partner for Faster Payments; SIA’s Jiffy Hits Milestone (Jan. 25, 2016)
VocaLink is working with Raphaels Bank to enable access to the Faster Payments Scheme for several U.K. banks, including competing financial institutions. Meanwhile, Italian payments processor SIA announced its mobile money service Jiffy has more than 250,000 users as of the end of 2015.
InComm Launches Digital Visa Cards for Loyalty, Incentives (Jan. 21, 2016)
InComm is bringing its line of Visa-branded gift and reward cards to the digital realm, announcing the launch of new digital versions of the cards for use in incentive and loyalty programs.
NRF BIG Show: Diebold Brings NFC to Self-Checkout (Jan. 19, 2016)
With mobile devices projected to play an increasing role in in-store shopping, ATM maker Diebold Inc. has unveiled a new self-checkout concept that enables users to make purchases by scanning items via mobile.
Retailers Combat Shopping Cart Abandonment with Visa Checkout (Jan. 13, 2016)
Many retailers selling products online continue to combat shopping cart abandonment and lost sales during the checkout process. Java giant Starbucks and big box chain Walmart are the latest retailers fighting back to convert consumers from browsers into buyers by making checkout easier for them.
Chime Rings in Automated Saving Feature (Jan. 13, 2016)
Many millennials recognize the importance of saving but often find it difficult to follow through on actually setting aside funds.
Canadian Mint Selects nanoPay to Bring Digital Currency to a Widespread Audience (Jan. 12, 2016)
Toronto-based fintech startup nanoPay is taking Canada another step toward delivering digital currency on a mass scale. Following a selection process of software developers charged with creating payment apps for the MintChip digital currency created by the Royal Canadian Mint, nanoPay today announced it has acquired all MintChip assets and was chosen to further expand MintChip acceptance.
Ford and Amazon Work to Make Cars Smarter (Jan. 12, 2016)
Ford wants to links its cars with Amazon’s Alexa technology, enabling drivers more Web-connected control over their cars and homes. The move represents the latest development in the Internet of Things, which was a hot topic at last week’s Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas.
ADP’s ALINE Payroll Card Integrates Apple Pay (Jan. 11, 2016)
ADP has announced that its ALINE Card is integrated with Apple Pay, making the Paybefore Award-winning card one of the first prepaid cards in the mobile wallet.
Investment Roundup: Square, Starling, Deposit Solutions (Jan. 11, 2016)
After a hot 2015, fintech investment is off to a strong start in the New Year. In recent days, U.K. digital financial services provider Starling Bank and European retail banking disruptor Deposit Solutions each landed new financing, while global asset manager BlackRock acquired at least a 5 percent stake in New York City-based Square.
Blackhawk Continues Gifting, Incentives Expansion with $120 Million Buy (Jan. 7, 2016)
The holiday shopping season may be over, but Blackhawk Network remains in a buying mood.
MasterCard, Wirecard Offer MasterPass to Singapore Cab Riders (Jan. 7, 2016)
Commuters hailing a cab in Singapore now can use MasterPass, MasterCard’s digital wallet, to pay their fares.
Smartphones Surpass Tablets for E-Commerce Sales (Jan. 7, 2016)
Smartphones accounted for 17 percent of online sales in the U.S. last year, beating out tablets, at 14 percent, according to the State of Retailing Online 2016, a widely cited annual report from Forrester Research Inc., Bizrate Insights and Shop.org, the e-commerce arm of the National Retail Federation trade group.
MasterCard Enables Payments via Refrigerators and Fitness Devices (Jan. 6, 2016)
MasterCard wants consumers to use its cards and payment network to buy goods through their refrigerators and fitness devices, going by announcements made this week at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas.
Orange, Groupama Banque Developing Mobile Bank (Jan. 5, 2016)
Orange’s new partnership with Groupama enables the French telco to offer banking services with the launch of Orange Bank while beefing up Groupama’s online banking business. The partnership also could lead to Orange acquiring a 65 percent stake in Groupama Banque.
More Mobile Payments Come to Latin America (Jan. 5, 2016)
Latin American consumers will have more access to mobile payments through a deal between ABnote and MeaWallet. The move comes as more consumers in the region turn to mobile devices to access the Web.
Will Mike Tyson Bitcoin Wallet Be Champ or Knocked Out? (Jan. 4, 2016)
Will the recently launched Mike Tyson Digital Wallet for bitcoin users be crowned the champ when other celebrity-endorsed payments products have failed to take hold? Bitcoin Direct is banking on Tyson’s endorsement of its digital wallet to become as synonymous as former boxing champ George Foreman and his grill.
Walmart Adds MasterPass for Online, Mobile Checkout (Jan. 4, 2016)
Hot on the heels of its December Walmart Pay launch, retail giant Walmart is taking additional steps to speed up payments for shoppers. MasterCard announced today that Walmart will accept MasterPass in 2016 across its domestic online properties. The partnership suggests that even as retailers launch proprietary ways to pay, giving consumers more payment options will win out over exclusivity.
Millennial Mashup: Young Consumers Mix GPR, Traditional Banking (Dec. 23, 2015)
Millennials continue to show high interest in GPR prepaid cards and other alternative financial services—but they’re not turning their backs on banks, according to a new report from the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia’s Payment Cards Center.
Idaho Ag Dept. First to Launch NIC’s eGovExpress Digital Wallet (Dec. 23, 2015)
Idaho’s Department of Agriculture is the first government department to launch the eGovExpress digital wallet developed by Olathe, Kan.-based NIC Inc., provider of official government Web portals and digital government services for more than 3,500 federal, state and local government agencies.
PayPal’s One Touch Attracts 10 Million Users (Dec. 22, 2015)
PayPal’s One Touch, a fledgling mobile payments tool that enables quick purchases, has attracted 10 million users since its April launch, just as other mobile payment programs strive for dominance.
Is Target Next to Develop Mobile Wallet? (Dec. 22, 2015)
Rumors are beginning to swirl around Target developing its own m-wallet, but like Walmart, the retailer says it’s still committed to MCX’s CurrentC.
China Welcomes Apple, Samsung; Australia Says ‘Yes’ to Android Pay, ‘No’ to Apple Pay (Dec. 21, 2015)
Chinese consumers soon will have a sizable selection of m-wallets to choose from as the country is becoming awash with big players in the m-wallet space. Both, Apple and Samsung Electronics, late last week announced deals with China UnionPay. Meanwhile, the road continues to be rocky for Apple in Australia, where banks have agreed to work with Android Pay, but not Apple Pay.
Dunkin’ Donuts Mobile App Integrates Apple Pay (Dec. 15, 2015)
Users of the popular Dunkin’ Donuts payment and loyalty app now can use Apple Pay to purchase, gift or reload virtual Dunkin’ Donuts Cards to fuel the retailer’s mobile app. The integration began on Dec. 7, in time for the holiday gifting season and adds another use case for Apple Pay.
UnionPay Debuts Mobile Wallet in China with Deep Partnership Roster (Dec. 15, 2015)
China-based payments giant UnionPay has launched QuickPass, a mobile payments service with more than 20 bank partners and acceptance at more than 10,000 retail locations. That deep roster of launch partners could help state-run UnionPay compete with privatelyheld players in the Chinese m-payments sector, most notably Alibaba and Tencent.
