Worldwide


GiftYa Raises $1 Million to Develop Patented Gift Credit System (Jan. 30, 2013)

Jan. 30, 2013 GiftYa LLC, a mobile and digital gift credit platform and spinoff company of parent GiftCards.com LLC, has received $1 million of seed capital to develop the GiftYa platform. The $1 million investment comes from Jason Wolfe, founder of GiftCards.com and CEO of Wolfe LLC. GiftYa, which will be available online and as […]

SALT Technology Raises $2 Million in Funding (Jan. 30, 2013)

Jan. 30, 2013 SALT Technology Inc., a San Francisco-based provider of a cloud-based mobile payments platform, has raised $2 million in financing from private investors with backgrounds in the mobile, financial and payments technology sectors. The company, which also has offices in London and Toronto, said it will use the new funding to accelerate the development […]

Planning for profitability

Regulatory demands and improved profitability are fuelling a move to dynamic capital planning, but few banks have firm plans.

Information Mosaic sets out tools for T2S

Software company Information Mosaic has released an improved version of its corporate actions tool, IMActions, which it says will help banks and CSDs prepare for T2S.

Rise of the machines: banks embrace automation despite the cost

Flawed decisions taken by machines are causing financial services firms to lose customers and suffer unexpected costs, according to new report by the Economist Intelligence unit. Yet retail banks are increasingly turning to technology to assess customers.

Intuit Nabs Facebook-Based Commerce Platform Payvment (Jan. 29, 2013)

Jan. 29, 2013 Software maker Intuit Inc. has acquired Facebook e-commerce platform Payvment, taking over the Palo Alto, Calif., company’s employees, technology and patents—but not its customers. In a note posted on its Website yesterday, Payvment announced that its team was “joining a new company” and that the platform—which enables retailers to create their own […]

Ingenico Eyes E-Commerce with Ogone Buy (Jan. 29, 2013)

Jan. 29, 2013 In a move POS terminal maker Ingenico said is part of its bid to become a “one-stop-shop” for multichannel payment solutions, the Paris-based company has entered a deal to acquire payment processor Ogone Partners for EUR360 million (US$485 million). Ingenico will incorporate Ogone’s 42,000-merchant online payments platform into its existing POS and […]

FreedomPay Launches ‘Vibe’ Mobile Wallet for Restaurants (Jan. 29, 2013)

Jan. 29, 2013 Adding to a growing array of mobile payments options for merchants, FreedomPay is entering the fray with “Vibe,” a mobile wallet initially targeting restaurant operators interested in creating targeted consumer promotions on the fly, based on specials, weather and in-store traffic conditions. The Radnor, Pa.-based payment processor says its cloud-based mobile wallet […]

Social media 2.0 for banks

A new social media tool designed for banks and built by British technology firm Integritie aims to break through the barriers that separate customers from their bank.

Seller beware

Conduct risk, which places emphasis on providers of credit to treat customers fairly, will challenge them to deliver higher standards of customer support across the whole relationship.

Riding the payments roller-coaster

UK banks are still in “a difficult place” as they face economic uncertainty, increased cost and competitive pressures, complex regulations and rapid technological changes – but the changes that are happening in the payments industry offer scope for them to reclaim the initiative and deploy innovative solutions.

Industry “not ready” for OTC derivatives reform

Four out of five financial institutions are not ready for new regulations governing the trading, reporting and clearing of OTC derivatives, according to a new survey by US communications company IPC.

Paybefore Announces Winners, Opens Voting for Best in Category (Jan. 28, 2013)

Jan. 28, 2013 Paybefore today announced winners for the 2013 Paybefore Awards—the most prestigious recognition of excellence in the worldwide prepaid and emerging payments industry. And for the first time in the seven-year history of the awards, Paybefore is allowing visitors to Paybefore.com (subscribers and nonsubscribers) to cast their votes for Best in Category through Feb. […]

2103 Paybefore Awards Category 20: Breakout Prepaid Company of the Year

The organization that stood out from the crowd in 2012 to make a positive, game-changing difference in the prepaid/emerging payments environment in a geographic region or globally. May be a new or established organization. Company Name: American Express American Express is a global financial services company, providing customers with access to products, insights and experiences […]

2013 Paybefore Awards Category 15: Best Non-U.S.-Based Program

Best prepaid or emerging payments program launched and operated by a non-U.S. company outside the United States. Programs using a U.S.-based company for processing or similar support are eligible. Program Name: NuCard Prepaid CardCompany Name: Tutuka South Africa has a large microlending market that provides short-term, unsecured loans to millions of South Africans. NuCard was […]

2013 Paybefore Awards Category 8: Outstanding Mobile Wallet or Mobile Application

The in-market mobile wallet or mobile application that (1) provides end users with value-added features and/or enhances payment capabilities, user decision-making or loyalty and (2) provides retailers with a strong value proposition. Program Name: moneto Prepaid MasterCardCompany Names: DeviceFidelity, MasterCard With real-time balance and transaction history, free P2P money transfers, the only instant cash-back rewards […]

2013 Paybefore Awards Category 3A: Best General Purpose Reloadable Card Program-U.S. Solutions

Best use of a consumer-funded reloadable network branded prepaid card* for general use, such as ATM access and purchasing. Includes travel, remittance and youth-focused (including campus and student) programs; excludes payroll programs. Program Name: PayPal Prepaid MasterCardCompany Names: PayPal, MasterCard The PayPal Prepaid MasterCard is the only prepaid card that can link automatically to PayPal’s digital […]

Washington watchdog raps regulators over Dodd-Frank rule-making

US financial services regulators have not properly evaluated the impact of rules they have proposed or introduced in implementing the Dodd-Frank Act, and should improve their co-ordination says a critical report from a congressional watchdog.

Breaking News: Obama 2012 Recess Appointments Unconstitutional (Jan. 25, 2013)

Jan. 25, 2013 Just a day after President Obama nominated CFPB Director Richard Cordray to continue in his role as the bureau’s director, a three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit ruled that the President violated the Constitution when he bypassed the Senate to fill vacancies on the National Labor Relations Board, according to a […]

Regional differences colour IT spending priorities

Total bank IT spending across North America, Europe, and Asia-Pacific will grow to $179.2 billion in 2013, an increase of 3.4% over last year according to research and consulting firm Celent.

Obama Re-nominates Cordray as CFPB Director (Jan. 24, 2013)

Jan. 24, 2013 Wasting little time following his inauguration on Monday, President Barack Obama this afternoon has re-nominated Richard Cordray as director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB). The confirmation process for the former Ohio Attorney General could be rocky, considering Obama’s appointment of Cordray last year during a congressional recess. “There were no […]

Regulators to Set Guidelines on FIs’ Social Media Activity (Jan. 24, 2013)

Jan. 24, 2013 With U.S. financial institutions increasingly using social media to market to and interact with consumers, federal regulators have set their sights on establishing guidelines for consumer protection and compliance over such channels. The Federal Financial Institutions Examinations Council (FFIEC) has issued a notice of proposed guidance and request for comment from the […]

Fiserv Survey: More Consumers Use Mobile Devices to Pay Bills (Jan. 24, 2013)

Jan. 24, 2013 The number of consumers  using mobile devices to pay bills is slowly gaining momentum, according to Fiserv Inc., a Brookfield, Wis.-based provider of financial services technology, in its fifth annual Billing Household Survey, which assesses bill payment habits of active online households and infrequent or non-Internet users. Though the percentage of households […]

Taiwan’s FTC Approves Mobile Payment Platform (Jan. 24, 2013)

Jan. 24, 2012 Mobile carriers around the world continue to join forces to enable mobile payments. On Jan. 23, Taiwan’s Fair Trade Commission (FTC) approved an application by five domestic mobile carriers and transit card provider EasyCard Corp. to jointly run a platform for mobile payment-related apps, according to the Central News Agency. Chunghwa Telecom […]

Report: Corporate Mobile Payments Reduce Costs by Up to 20 Percent (Jan. 24. 2013)

Jan. 24, 2013 The rise of corporate mobile payments is leading to some big saving for companies around the globe that are seeing reductions of up to 20 percent on their cash-collection costs, according to a new white paper by Mobile Money Consulting, a London-based advisory firm. Corporations in emerging markets are seeing the highest […]

Earnings Roundup: Google, TSYS (Jan. 24, 2013)

Jan. 24, 2013 Online search giant Google Inc. and payments processor TSYS recently released fourth-quarter financial results. Google reported revenues of $14.4 billion for the fourth quarter of 2012, an increase of 36 percent compared with $10.6 billion in the same quarter a year ago. Net income in the fourth quarter of 2012 grew 7.4 […]

Unlocking the potential of Big Data

At the centre of the national crisis sits a banking industry tarnished in the public’s eyes by poor performance, excessive pay and the ongoing need for state support. Just where does the industry go from here and how does it start to rebuild trust?

Lloyds slashes another 940 jobs as cuts deepen

Lloyds Banking Group is to cut 940 more jobs, the latest in a series of savage headcount culls at major financial institutions. Separate announcements earlier this week confirmed 200 human resources jobs would be axed, and a further 175 cuts made in the Halifax branch network.

CGI in mobile alliance with Monitise

CGI, which recently acquired UK software house Logica, has formed a partnership with mobile banking and payment specialist Monetise to offer joint services for banking and payments companies using the Monitise platform.

Broker back-ends still outpaced by trading technology

Too many brokers are still using outdated methods such as email and telephone to confirm trade matches, undermining the advantages gleaned from high-performance trading technology, according to a new study by financial research firm Aite Group.

Chilean broker imports UK trading technology

Chilean broker Banchile, part of Santiago- based Banco de Chile, has deployed a brokerage platform from UK systems supplier Fidessa that will link it to international trading venues.

The Return of the Old-Fashioned Villain

The latest bi-annual Fraud Barometer from KPMG has shown a rise in individuals committing more traditional swindles such as Ponzi schemes, cheque fraud and procurement fraud. The findings are in broad agreement with figures from CIFAS, the UK fraud monitoring service, published last week

Information Mosaic makes Kunz chairman

Post-trade software company Information Mosaic has appointed Ulrich Kunz as non-executive chairman to help drive its ambitions to expand into analytics.

Google Powers Digital Coupons with Zavers (Jan. 22, 2013)

Jan. 22, 2013 Google Inc. is adding digital muscle to coupons with Zavers by Google, a paperless couponing system introduced earlier this month that enables consumers to capture coupons online and redeem them automatically through store loyalty cards, tracking their deals through a computer browser or any mobile phone. The system is designed to give […]