Friday , December 13, 2024

Kevin Woodward

Kevin's role at Digital Transactions is to write news and features stories for publication on the Web site and in the magazine. He also oversees the digital editorial aspect of the site and the Digital Transactions News daily newsletter.

Washlava Spins a New Way To Pay for, And Use, Laundry Services

Consumers have a new way to get, and pay for, clean clothes with the debut of Washlava. As announced this week, Washlava offers consumers a smart-phone app they can use to reserve washers and dryers, and then pay for that use. The service, another indicator of the increasing incidence of …

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The Case for Real-Time Payments Will Have To Be Compelling, An Expert Argues

As the U.S. payments system collectively ambles toward real-time payments, proponents will have to ensure its benefits outweigh those of existing expedited payments options. That’s one recommendation from the “Justifying Real-Time Payments in the United States” report released Tuesday by Maynard, Mass.-based Mercator Advisory Group Inc. The report examines the …

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In Yet Another ISV Play, GTCR Buys Sage Payment Solutions for $260 Million

Finally, the rumors can stop. Sage Payment Solutions, the U.S. merchant-services arm of Sage Group plc, has been sold to GTCR LLC, a Chicago-based private-equity firm, for $260 million, GTCR announced Friday. Reports of a possible sale of the company, which counts approximately 100,000 merchants in its portfolio, originally surfaced …

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First Data’s New Fraud-Detection Tool Features Real-Time Algorithm Updating

First Data Corp. is hoping that its scale—it says it processes more than 2,800 transactions per second coming from more than 6 million merchants—will give its new Fraud Detect service an edge in thwarting fraudulent transactions. Announced Thursday, Fraud Detect uses artificial intelligence and machine learning, fraud scoring, cybersecurity intelligence, …

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Banks And Non-Banks Play to Their Strengths As They Eye a $1.2 Trillion P2P Market

Financial institutions and third-party providers of digital person-to-person payments may have the same goal—ubiquity of service and adoption—but they’ll have to take different paths to get there, according to “Digital Person-to-Person Payments in the U.S.: The Competitive Landscape,” a report released last week by the Aite Group LLC. The P2P …

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Chip Card Shipments Top 2.1 Billion in 2016 But Show Signs of Leveling off in U.S., China

Global shipments of chip cards surpassed 2.1 billion in 2016, a 4% increase from 2015, says the Smart Payment Association. “Following significant EMV rollout programs in the United States and China, 2016 saw shipment volumes begin to normalize to reflect growing market maturity in most major global markets,” said Sylvie …

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USAA Solicits Other Financial Institutions To License its Remote Deposit Capture Technology Patent Rights

USAA, a pioneer in developing remote deposit capture, said it is “inviting” banks and credit unions to license the patent rights to its RDC technology, for which the financial-services giant holds approximately 50 patents. Launched in 2006 as a way to enable USAA’s customers, many of whom are in the …

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Cayan’s New Card Reader Targets Software Developers And Vendors

Cayan’s new Genius Mini card reader may look like any number of headphone-jack or Bluetooth devices meant to connect to a smart phone or tablet to enable payment card acceptance. That’s because it’s the software the Genius Mini uses that distinguishes it from similar devices. The device is designed to …

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North American Bancard Buys Total Merchant Services As Acquirer Consolidation Continues

Two powerhouse independent sales organizations are joining together. North American Bancard Holdings LLC is buying Total Merchant Services Inc. for an undisclosed amount. Woodland Hills, Calif.-based TMS processes more than $12 billion in annual transactions, which when added to NAB will result in more than $50 billion in annual processing …

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Square Lays out Its Strategy for Growth at an Upbeat Investor Day Presentation

Square Inc. outlined its growth plans with an emphasis on selling new services and expanding internationally during its first investor day on Tuesday. In its presentation, Square said it wants to improve the efficiency of acquiring merchants, which it calls sellers; move its services up market to larger merchants; grow …

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