Ron Hynes has been on the job as the new CEO of UniRush LLC less than a month, but he’s already looking ahead. And, he’s not going to let the CFPB’s looming final prepaid rulemaking slow the company down when it comes to innovation and product development. Hynes spoke with Paybefore about what he brings to his new role and why UniRush’s cardholder settlement made him want the CEO job even more.
Mastercard on Tuesday (July 26) was granted a patent for a device that sidesteps PINs and biometrics for quick consumer payment authorization. The idea is that consumers would authenticate themselves before making the purchase, thereby enabling much faster checkout in-store.
Square Inc. reportedly wants to set up shop in the U.K. That would put the mobile payments service up against such players as PalPay and Germany-based SumUp—among many others—for the loyalties of merchants.
The wait is over. The first publication dedicated to our annual Pay Awards is here—packed with insights and inspiration from our 10th annual Pay Awards competition and the programs, companies and individual that walked away with top honors. You’ll also get an exclusive look at comments from our expert judges.
We celebrate excellence in prepaid, retail & loyalty, and payments technology for our 10th annual Pay Awards 2016.
Citing a lack of financing, gift card exchange GiftCardRescue.com has closed up shop. Kwame Kuadey, founder and CEO, launched the company in 2008, enabling consumers to exchange unwanted gift cards or buy new ones at a discount.
Mastercard is setting its sights on China, with plans to apply for a payment services license there and releasing a new index to track the pulse of the nation’s new economy. China began allowing foreign-based payment card providers to operate in the country in June, giving outside players the opportunity to access the country’s $8.25 trillion payments market—provided they met certain capital and security standards. Mastercard currently is studying the requirements and deciding whether to apply for a license alone or with a partner.
With nearly 40 million Americans using wearables—and that number expected to more than double by 2018, retailers are looking for ways to capitalize on wearable popularity by using these devices to push personalized offers and provide payments capabilities to improve the shopping experience.
Mobile banking is catching on in a big way in the U.K., with payments via mobile banking apps reaching £347 (about US$456 million) in 2015, up a whopping 54 percent over the previous year, according to a new study. The Way We Bank Now, a report from the British Bankers’ Association (BBA) and professional services organization EY, found that U.K. consumers used mobile banking apps—ranging from those of major banks to full-featured mobile-centric accounts—more than 4 billion times last year.
Catch up on Banking Technology’s top five fintech stories of the week – all in one place! BBA records dramatic increase in mobile banking usage Digital banking is in a “consumer-led revolution”. MasterCard buys VocaLink for $920 million Current owners Barclays, HSBC, Lloyds and RBS will receive a handy windfall. Cidel Bank implementing ERI’S Olympic […]
For those wondering if the post-eBay PayPal would act differently, July 21 gave us the answer: Yes. On Thursday, PayPal announced a strategic partnership with Visa where Visa would get preference—in both PayPal and Venmo apps—and PayPal said that it would “not encourage Visa cardholders to link to a bank account via ACH” and “PayPal will also support and work with issuers to identify consumers who choose to migrate existing ACH payment flows to their Visa cards.”
Mastercard is set to gain control of a major chunk of the U.K. transaction processing market, entering a definitive agreement to acquire 92.4 percent of VocaLink in a deal that could total up to $1.14 billion. A bank-owned consortium, VocaLink’s technology underpins the British direct debit and credit payments system, as well as the LINK ATM network and the Faster Payments Scheme for real-time mobile and Internet payments.
For once, the sound bites being used to describe upcoming changes in the global banking industry may actually be too conservative. The latest Payments Services Directive likely will revolutionize how consumers interact with their banks and the protection they can expect when paying online or on their mobile devices—and the effects won’t be limited to Europe.
In addition to brightening text messages and tweets, the popular icons beloved by everyone from tweens to Baby Boomers may soon serve a much more substantial purpose—mobile and payments authentication.
To harness the true power of tokenization—a technology that underlies mobile payments—banks need to change their thinking. Doing so could help boost the appeal of mobile wallets.
Retailers can cater more closely to the ever-changing needs and preferences of online shoppers if they resist falling prey to these four common misconceptions about how consumers pay.
In this contentious presidential election cycle, it’s hard to imagine anything getting 70 percent of the Senate to back it. But 70 U.S. Senators want the CFPB to lay off credit unions and community banks when it comes to certain, unspecified rules.
Duplicate charges and delayed payments to online gamblers: Those are among the issues reported as technical problems at Worldpay continue for the third week.
Visa has been granted a patent that could help in a big way by identifying and “blacklisting” a device that’s been used to perpetrate fraud.
A University of Toronto study raises a delightfully non-intuitive payments point. Although shoppers gravitate toward the payment forms promising the least friction, do they value purchases more when they are made with more friction, such as cash?
Fran Fisher, strategic sales and business development manager-ARM for a subsidiary of global payment processor Payscout Inc., has been appointed to the Association of Credit and Collection Professionals (ACA) International Council of Delegates.
Ballard Spahr LLP has announced that David Landau has joined the firm as a partner in its New York office.
The Bancorp has named Jeff Nager as senior vice president and director, government guaranteed lending.
Corbin Simon, executive recruiter at R&P Group, has won the U.S. Recruiting Network’s Sioux Falls Area Top Recruiter Award for the second quarter of 2016.
Blackhawk Network President and CEO Talbott Roche has been appointed to the board of directors of digital interactive entertainment provider Electronic Arts (EA).
Bacs Payment Schemes Ltd., the organization behind direct debit and Bacs direct credit in the U.K., as well as the current account switch service, has become the latest member of the Emerging Payments Association (EPA).
Global provider of financial services technology provider Fiserv Inc. has appointed John Kim to its board of directors.
Law firm K&L Gates LLP has opened a Munich office, the firm’s third office location in Germany, eighth in Europe, and 46th worldwide.
Online loan marketplace Lending Club announced today that Patrick Dunne has joined the company as chief capital officer.
Payments industry research and advisory firm Mercator Advisory Group has appointed Ted Iacobuzio as managing director of custom research and consulting services.
During Paybefore Editor-in-Chief Loraine DeBonis’ maternity leave, which is expected to begin around Aug. 1, Evan Schuman will be assuming her role.
Scottsdale, Ariz.-based unified commerce solutions provider Spindle Inc. has announced the appointment of John Hunnicutt as chief financial officer.
Gift card processor Givex has joined the UK Gift Card and Voucher Association (UKGCVA), the country’s trade body for vouchers and gift cards.
While the prepaid payroll sector has drawn criticism from some policymakers, a new study shows that for many workers—especially millennials—payroll cards are an attractive option for receiving wages and managing money.
Threat delivered, threat executed: Walmart has started to reject the use of Visa payment cards in some of the retailer’s Canadian stores. The chain had earlier said it would do so because of an interchange dispute with the payments network.
A U.K. hearing scheduled for October will consider if Brexit can happen without parliamentary approval. The U.K.’s June 23 vote to leave the union has led to confusion and much speculation in the payments world, as the industry wonders about such issues as licenses and passporting, along with other financial services regulations.
Interest in virtual reality has been bubbling up in tech circles for a while, but 2016 could be the year it finally boils over into the mainstream consumer market and changes retail for the better.
The latest edition of our flagship magazine – Banking Technology – is out now, packed with news, analysis and insights, case studies, research and expert commentary.
Canada’s first mobile wallet suretap is now one of the latest casualties in the mobile wallet wars. Citing market changes and an increasing number of mobile payment and banking options, among other factors, the Toronto-based company will shut down the mobile wallet as of Aug. 26. But it’s not alone. Semble, a New Zealand-based joint venture created by several telecoms and banks, discontinued its mobile payment service July 15.
The CFPB’s recent enforcement action against Santander Bank over the bank’s overdraft practices underscores federal regulators’ focus on holding regulated institutions responsible for the actions of third-party vendors, and could provide a preview of the CFPB’s upcoming rulemaking on overdraft.
