Digital Transactions Authoritative, insightful and timely information for payments professionals
Banks face a new threat in electronic payments, according to a report just out from Javelin Strategy and Research: the ability of telecommunications companies to take the driver's seat in mobile person-to-person payments. This risk comes to the fore as the number of so-called smart phones explodes and consumers show …
Read More »A Year Later, 500,000 Takers for Social Security Card Surprises Experts
The U.S. Treasury Department's Direct Express card for Social Security recipients apparently is the right prepaid card at the right time. Treasury's Financial Management Service last week reported that more than 500,000 Americans use the Comerica Bank-issued card, which is aimed at getting Social Security and Supplemental Security Income (SSI) …
Read More »A Startup Builds on Cap One’s Decoupled Debit Program to Run Rewards
A company founded by the man behind Capital One Financial Corp.'s decoupled debit program is introducing what it terms a “next-generation debit rewards” system that allows banks to provide cost-free rewards to cardholders. Under the system developed by Atlanta-based Cardlytics, merchants fund rewards that will be offered to banks' online-banking …
Read More »Home Depot Opens the Door to Big-Box Contactless Payments
MasterCard Inc.'s announcement on Monday that The Home Depot Inc. would accept the MasterCard PayPass contactless card at 1,974 U.S. locations, along with last week's news that sporting-goods chain The Sports Authority also would take PayPass, indicate that the card network is looking beyond the original base of cash-oriented merchants …
Read More »An ISO Shows How Smart Phones Are Taking Root in Acquiring
The concept of using so-called smart phones as mobile credit card terminals started getting headlines less than a year ago, and the experience of one independent sales organization that has developed software applications for the mobile devices shows just how rapidly handsets like iPhones and BlackBerrys are taking root in …
Read More »Lower Spending on Each Transaction Drops Dollar Volume for AmEx
As the economy continues to sputter, U.S. card-billed business at American Express Co. fell 15% to $104.8 billion in the second quarter, from $123.5 billion a year earlier, according to results the travel-and-entertainment giant reported on Thursday. Average U.S. cardholder spending during the quarter on so-called basic card issued directly …
Read More »Microsoft Is Among the First to Try out PayPal’s New Payments API
Microsoft Inc. is among three developers that have integrated PayPal Inc.'s new application programming interfaces into applications as part of a beta program, PayPal announced on Thursday. PayPal formally opened its payment platform to third-party platform developers at a conference for developers. By opening up the platform program?called PayPal X?PayPal …
Read More »Going After Right Merchants for Remote Capture Pays off for ISOs
Merchants that are good prospects for accepting remote deposit capture services have different needs from many credit and debit card-accepting merchants, but independent sales organizations that do their remote capture homework will be rewarded. That was the word on Wednesday from several vendors speaking at the MidWest Acquirers Association 7th …
Read More »Eye on Acquiring: Airlines Seek Ways to Chop Acceptance Costs
Buffeted by strong economic headwinds, U.S. airlines are looking at a variety of ways to slow the seemingly inexorable rise of card-acceptance costs, as borne out by two separate developments in recent days. United Air Lines Inc. said on Monday it is putting off for up to 60 days a …
Read More »Fifth Third Is the Latest Bank To Use Western Union for Money Transfer
Fifth Third Bank will be offering global money-transfer services at its 1,300 branches in 12 states under an agreement The Western Union Co. announced Monday. The new service is part of the Cincinnati-based bank's ongoing effort to provide services to the unbanked and underbanked, Mark Erhardt, senior vice president of …
Read More »