PayTech


Kroger Latest Merchant to Challenge Visa Debit Verification Rules

Grocery giant Kroger Co. has filed a lawsuit against Visa Inc. over the payment network’s rules for verifying EMV debit card transactions. First reported by the Wall Street Journal, the suit is based on similar issues as those in a legal challenge by Walmart, which sued Visa in May.

Android Pay, QuickPass Expand to New Markets

This week marks a couple of “firsts” for two mobile wallets. Android Pay has launched in its first Asian country, and UnionPay International’s QuickPass mobile wallet took its first step outside of China.

QikServe Updates Mobile-Ordering Technology for Hotels

QikServe, which sells mobile ordering and payment services, has released QikServe5, which the company said caters to the hospitality sector. Mobile ordering, particularly order-ahead features, have been more prevalent in the QSR industry thus far.

Swift’s global payments initiative gets boost from 73 banks

Swift has revealed 73 banks worldwide have now joined its global payments initiative for cross-border payments. The latest to join are Alfa-Bank, Axis Bank, Banco de Crédito del Peru, Banco do Brasil, Bangkok Bank, Bank of Nova Scotia, Banque Européenne d’investissement, CaixaBank, Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce, Credit Agricole, CTBC Bank, E.Sun Commercial Bank, Fifth […]

Amex to Reach Cardholders through Facebook Messenger

A new partnership with Facebook will enable American Express to interact with cardholders via Facebook Messenger. Unveiled at the Cannes-Lions International Festival of Creativity in Cannes, France, the initiative features an American Express messenger “bot” that sends cardholders real-time purchase notifications and information about card benefits and services related to those purchases.

Jacobs Named Green Dot Chairman

Green Dot Corp. has announced the appointment of William I Jacobs as chairman of the board of directors, effective June 23, 2016. Jacobs takes the helm following the company’s May decision to split the roles of chairman and CEO—both of which had been held by Steve Streit—after a lengthy proxy battle with shareholder Harvest Capital Strategies.

Canada to Germany Ripple bank transfer breakthrough for banking industry

Canada’s ATB Financial sent €666.67 to ReiseBank in Germany using Ripple technology, with the transaction completing in eight seconds. The participants say this is the world’s first bank transfer using blockchain. SAP, which provides ATB with its core banking software, and Accenture (SAP’s partner and system integrator at ATB) were also involved in the project. […]

Fiserv launches real-time alerts solution for bank customers, Notifi

Fiserv has launched Notifi, a platform for the delivery of real-time alerts for retail and SME bank customers. Home Federal Bank and C&F Bank are among the first takers. The solution consolidates information from across a financial institution’s systems – including core account processing, online banking and mobile banking, lending software, debit and credit cards […]

U.K. Votes to Exit EU; Payments Industry Faces Uncertainty

The people have decided and the U.K. is splitting from the European Union, raising serious concerns for the payments industry. Among those concerns is how passporting will work when the U.K. is no longer part of the EU since the majority of European e-money issuers have licenses in the U.K. that they passport elsewhere. Fifty-two percent of voters opted to bow out, or “Brexit,” as it’s commonly called.

Payments Industry Braces for ‘Brexit’ Results

As voters head to polling places today to decide whether the U.K. should split from the European Union, the referendum is top of mind for members of the payments industry around the world. Several issues for the industry would be in flux should the U.K. decide to bow out, or “Brexit,” as it’s commonly called.

Wirecard and Verifone join forces to grow payments business in Asia

The five-year agreement combines Wirecard software and Verifone devices, with Indonesia as the first target market. The strategic alliance will see the Indonesian subsidiary of Wirecard, PT Prima Vista Solusi, collaborating with the local operations of Verifone. Steve Aliferis, president of Verifone Asia Pacific, says that the company is now establishing “a local team and […]

People on the Move: Eugene Licker, Ballard Spahr LLP

Eugene Licker, a well-known litigator who focuses on consumer finance cases, securities litigation and enforcement, and white-collar defense, has joined Ballard Spahr LLP’s New York office as of counsel in the firm’s litigation department.

SIA and UBI Banca trial person-to-business Jiffy mobile payments

Jiffy – the instant mobile payments service developed by SIA – is coming to Italian stores. The person-to-business (P2B) project is piloted in Milan and Bergamo, allowing customers to pay via app at participating retail outlets authorised by UBI Banca. SIA says that “other major Italian banks have expressed interest in offering P2B the service […]

Report: A Boon for Banking, Payment Apps as Mobile Attachment Grows

Americans are more reliant than ever on mobile devices to manage their finances, presenting a major opportunity for providers of emerging payments services like mobile wallets and P2P, according to a new study from Bank of America. The bank’s third annual Trends in Consumer Mobility Report collected and analyzed data from more than 1,300 U.S. adults over the age of 18 who have a bank account and own a smartphone.

Chase Expands Mobile P2P Payments

Chase has expanded its P2P QuickPay service, so its customers can send and receive money in real time with one another as well as customers of Bank of America and U.S. Bank. Later this month, customers with smartphones can use the Chase mobile app to enroll in QuickPay and add payment recipients from their contact lists.

Computer Maker Acer Reports Online Data Breach

Hackers have apparently hit the online store operated by Taiwan-based computer maker Acer, potentially making off with customers’ card numbers, expiration dates and security codes.

Seamless and Secure: Navigating the Future of Commerce

Two large-scale trends are coming to a head with merchants at the crux: the digitization of payments and increasing card-not-present fraud. Merchants need the right tools, including data analytics and fraud-prevention systems, to help them meet customer demand for a frictionless experience, while keeping fraudsters at bay.

Visa Inc completes acquisition of Visa Europe, appoints new board member    

Visa Inc and Visa Europe are united again. The combined company provides digital payment products, services and processing to about 17,100 financial institution clients and partners, 40+ million merchant outlets, and three billion Visa accounts worldwide. The company says its branded cards and payment products amount to approximately $6.8 trillion in global payments volume annually. […]

Nominate Your Favorite Payments Tech Guru

You weighed in on Women Driving Payments Change, Top 10 Payments Lawyers and the Smartest People in Payments. Now we want to know which chief technology officers deserve the title of Top Payments Tech Guru. Enter your picks by July 1. We’ll tally the top vote-getters and have final voting from the short list next month. The Top Payments Tech Gurus will be featured in our Spring issue of Pay Magazine.

Okla. Delays Hwy Patrol Plan to Use Card Readers; FinCEN May Have other Ideas

Oklahoma Governor Mary Fallin says state law enforcement will delay using devices that read the magnetic stripes on payment cards, following outcries from lawmakers and consumer groups about privacy and legal concerns. But mention of a supplemental proposed rulemaking suggests FinCEN may be looking to revisit card readers at the border.

InComm: Nearly 70 Percent of Vacationers Use Prepaid Cards for Convenience

As consumers pack up their cars or board their planes for summer getaways, prepaid cards will be just as important as sunblock or a comfortable pair of walking shoes. Many travelers plan to bring prepaid cards because of convenience, security and budgeting, according to an InComm consumer survey.

CFSI Awards Fledging Fintech Firms at its Emerge Conference

Nine fledgling fintech companies have won $250,000 each from the Center for Financial Services Innovation, or CFSI. At least week’s Emerge Conference in New Orleans, CFSI announced the FinLab winners from more than 300 applicants.

Class Action Takes Aim at CPI

CPI Card Group has been targeted in a new class action lawsuit over claims the card manufacturing and fulfillment specialist failed to disclose important information to shareholders in the run-up to its IPO last year.

SCT Inst scheme: instant payments Europe-wide – have your say!

Flexibility and transparency are key to the first pan-European instant payments scheme, states Javier Santamaria, chairman of the European Payments Council (EPC). Currently, instant payments in Europe operate only within the borders of individual countries or among customers of the same payment service providers (PSPs). To move away from this fragmentation, the EPC was invited […]

Emerge: Google Defends Ban on Payday Loan Ads

Nope, it’s not censorship, nor restraint of trade. Rather, Google’s recently announced ban on online payday loan ads shows that the search engine giant wants to do good by consumers. That’s what Vijay Padmanabhan, a policy adviser at Google, said this week in New Orleans at the Emerge: Consumer Health Financial Forum.

Top 10 Viewpoints of 2016

From the future of prepaid and which mobile wallets stand to win to regulatory uncertainty and the best route to market in Europe, view our most popular opinion pieces from 2016, so far.