Visa Checkout to Reach 16 Countries This Year (Feb. 23, 2015)
Visa is expanding Visa Checkout, its secure online payment service, to reach a total of 16 countries this year, the company said last week.
PayTech
Report: Google Wallet Hatching Makeover, Dangling Incentives for Carrier Support (Feb. 23, 2015)
Google Inc. is plotting another makeover for its 4-year-old Google Wallet, to be revealed in May at its annual I/O developer’s conference, according to a Feb. 20 report in the Wall Street Journal.
APS to Offer Banking Services through 11,500 Post Office Locations (Feb. 23, 2015)
Customers of Advanced Payment Solutions (APS), a London-based provider of alternative banking solutions, soon will be able to access banking serves through the U.K. Post Office’s 11,500 branches.
Samsung’s LoopPay Deal Buys Quick Path to Mobile Payments, Pressure for Apple Pay? (Feb. 19, 2015)
Samsung this week announced its purchase of mobile payments startup LoopPay, taking over its technology that enables magnetic stripe cards to be processed as contactless transactions at traditional payment terminals.
Judge Tosses Anti-Steering Rules, but Expert Says Door May Be Open for Appeal (Feb. 19, 2015)
A federal judge has ruled that American Express no longer may bar retailers from steering customers toward paying with cards with lower merchant fees.
Pay.gov Integrates PayPal, Dwolla with U.S. Gov’t Payments Portal (Feb. 19, 2015)
Pay.gov, the U.S. government’s online payments portal for 90 federal agencies, is expanding to embrace digital wallets, including PayPal and Dwolla, the U.S. Treasury announced this week.
Patent Hints at Coupons and Loyalty for Apple Pay; JetBlue Takes it to the Skies (Feb. 18, 2015)
Apple Inc. has filed a patent application indicating plans to add loyalty features to Apple Pay, introducing the option to redeem coupons and tickets via NFC, according to a new report.
Mitek Takes Mobile Deposit to SMBs (Feb. 18, 2015)
Mobile deposit capture (MDC) has gained tremendous ground with consumers looking for more convenient access to funds.
APEX Preview: How Washington Views Bells, Whistles and Horns
Prepaid may be a more expensive business to enter—as compliance costs increase and margins thin—but that doesn’t mean the entrepreneurialism and innovation that birthed the industry are finished. A panel at All Payments Expo in Las Vegas next week will explore what it takes to enter and succeed in the market amid unprecedented regulatory scrutiny and oversight.
Federal Gov’t to Support Apple Pay; MasterCard and Visa Beefing Up Security Efforts (Feb. 17, 2015)
The U.S. government is the latest to get behind Apple Pay as part of its commitment to encourage more secure payments technologies, the White House announced during its Summit on Cybersecurity and Consumer Protection at Stanford University on Feb. 13.
Ohio Lawmakers Reintroduce Bill to Add Congressional Oversight to CFPB (Feb. 17, 2015)
Lawmakers last week reintroduced a bill to add congressional oversight for the CFPB, which currently operates independently.
Cyberattack Hits 100 Banks, up to $1 Billion Stolen (Feb. 17, 2015)
Hackers may have made off with as much as $1 billion in a series of attacks on more than 100 banks and financial institutions in 30 nations.
Blockbuster Move: Green Dot Buys AccountNow, AchieveCard (Feb. 12, 2015)
Green Dot has acquired AccountNow and AchieveCard to expand its active cardholder base and distribution outside traditional retail, the company tells Paybefore.
Industry Veteran Creates CFPB NPRM Word Cloud
Wondering what the CFPB’s NPRM emphasizes?
Aite: 60% of U.S. POS Locations to Be EMV-Compliant by Year-End (Feb. 12, 2015)
About 60 percent of U.S. POS locations will accept EMV chip transactions by yearend, according to a recent Aite Group survey. The results suggest the push to upgrade terminals in advance of the October 2015 liability shift is “accelerating,” but serious gaps in awareness and planning still exist, especially among small and midsize merchants.
ICICI Bank Launches ‘Pockets’ Digital Wallet Targeting Youth (Feb. 12, 2015)
India’s second-largest bank ICICI Bank this week launched “Pockets,” a mobile wallet targeting younger consumers powered by a Visa prepaid card, enabling smartphone users to send and request funds, shop online and pay bills, whether or not they are an ICICI bank customer.
People on the Move: Stephen Rudner, Mark Westmoreland, Treliant Risk Advisors
Compliance advisory firm Treliant Risk Advisors has named Steve Rudner and Mark Westmoreland as principals of the firm.
People on the Move: Vasant Prabhu, Visa Inc.
Visa Inc. has announced the appointment of Vasant Prabhu as executive vice president and CFO.
Carl Williams, Planet Payment Inc.
Planet Payment Inc. announced that company president and CEO Carl Williams has been named chairman of its board of directors, effective immediately.
People on the Move: Mark Moore, Silicon Valley Bank
Mark Moore is now assistant general counsel for Silicon Valley Bank.
Companies on the Move: Meta Payment Systems Client Spotlight Awards
Meta Payment Systems, a division of MetaBank, has announced the recipients of its 2014 Client Spotlight Awards, honoring high-performing prepaid clients for the 2014 calendar year.
People on the Move: Pete Pouridis, Merchant Risk Council Board
The Merchant Risk Council (MRC), an association for professionals within ecommerce payments and fraud, announced that Pete Pouridis, vice president, loss prevention, The Neiman Marcus Group, has been appointed chairman of the MRC’s global board of directors.
People on the Move: Stefano Diemmi, Svyatoslav Garal, Alyson Grosshandler, goSwiff
Singapore-based goSwiff, a provider of mobile commerce, marketing and professional services, added three executives to its global team over the past several months.
People on the Move: Julia Cheney, Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia
The Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia has promoted Julia Cheney to assistant vice president and assistant director in the Payment Cards Center (PCC).
People on the Move: Linda Rossetti, W.net
The Women’s Network in Electronic Transactions (W.net), has announced that Linda Rossetti, founder and president of ISO Bluestone Payments LLC, has been elected its 2015 national president.
People on the Move: Scott Pearson, Ballard Spahr LLP
Attorney Scott Pearson has joined law firm Ballard Spahr LLP as a partner in the firm’s consumer financial services group, which defends financial institutions in class actions, government enforcement proceedings and other complex litigation.
People on the Move: Jay Shipowitz, Back on My Feet Board
Back on My Feet, a nonprofit organization that promotes the self-sufficiency of people experiencing homelessness by engaging them in running, has named Jay Shipowitz, CEO of ACE Cash Express, as the new chairman of its national board of directors.
Mozido Leaps into China with PayEase Acquisition (Feb. 10, 2015)
Mozido today announced it’s acquiring PayEase Corp., a Beijing-based payments gateway and processor with direct connections to 23 Chinese banks.
PayPal and Shell Enable Payment at the Pump Via Smartphone (Feb. 10, 2015)
PayPal and Shell are partnering to enable motorists in the U.K. to pay for gasoline at the pump via a smartphone app.
Amazon Adds Gift Cards to E-Commerce Portal (Feb. 10, 2015)
Amazon India’s Junglee e-commerce portal is now selling gift cards, the retail giant’s latest move in India, a market the company has described as a focal point for growth.
U.K. Contactless Payments Triple; Amex Rolls out Contactless EMV Cards in U.S. (Feb. 9, 2015)
Contactless payments surged in popularity in the U.K. within the past year, with contactless card spending volume tripling to £2.32 billion (US$3.53 billion) from £653.4 million in 2013, while total contactless transactions rose more than 200 percent to 319.2 million in 2014 from 100.4 million a year earlier, the UK Cards Association announced last week.
Fed Exec Floats Idea for Government-Backed Virtual Currency (Feb. 9, 2015)
As bitcoin and other virtual currencies remain subject to heavy scrutiny—and proposed regulation—by various government agencies, a senior Federal Reserve researcher is raising the possibility of the government creating a virtual currency of its own.
House Passes Bipartisan Bill Curbing CFPB Budget; Veto Expected
he House of Representatives on Feb. 4 passed bipartisan legislation sponsored by Rep. Virginia Foxx (R-N.C.) that she says would require greater transparency in government and would cap the CFPB budget for FY2016 at $550 million, $36 million below its expected funding.
Gov. Christie Signs ZIP Code Repeal Bill (Feb. 6, 2015)
N.J. Governor Chris Christie (R) signed into law a bill that eliminates the collection of consumer ZIP code information for gift cards purchased at the POS, putting an end to a protracted legal battle over unclaimed property rules in the state.
Capgemini and First Data forge payments development alliance
Technology consultancy Capgemini has formed a global alliance with First Data to develop payment software based on First Data’s VisionPlus and AccessPlus solutions. The pair say that they expect to begin delivering new solutions in the second quarter of this year.
Blog: Tackling Fraud with Data
Merchants appear to be more apt and capable of leveraging their own data today than the preceding several years. And, they are finding that using this data is more effective in combating fraud than traditional validation services.
Analyst: Apple Pay’s Success Likely to Spark M-Payments with Android, HCE (Feb. 4, 2015)
Apple Pay is a huge catalyst, not only for Apple but also for Android and host card emulation (HCE), First Annapolis’ Lee Manfred said during a keynote at the Smart Card Alliance Payments Summit. He urged issuers and merchants to view Apple Pay as a tool to build their own customized mobile strategies.
MasterCard Opens India Tech Hub, Largest outside U.S. (Feb. 4, 2015)
MasterCard continued its expansion in India today, with the official opening of the payment network’s new Technology Hub in the city of Pune.
U.S. EMV Card Shipments up 500% over Last Year, Association Reports (Feb. 4, 2015)
The U.S. migration to EMV is well underway in advance of the October 2015 EMV network liability shift, with EMV card manufacturers shipping 185 million EMV cards last year, up more than 500 percent from 30 million in 2013, the Europe-based cross-industry Smart Payment Association announced today.
Green Dot Gets Serious about Credit (Feb. 4, 2015)
Green Dot is considering expanding the financial services it provides to include what Chairman and CEO Steve Streit describes as “modern credit,” with an eye toward using transactional data for underwriting.
