Banks have closed thousands of branches in recent years, hitting rural America especially hard and leaving retail ATMs, prepaid cards, and services from non-bank providers to fill the void, according to a new Federal Reserve report. The “Perspectives from Main Street: Bank Branch Access in Rural Communities” report released Monday …
Read More »Behind Galileo’s Do-It-Yourself Approach To Fast Funding Mated To Instant Debit Cards
Sitting in a meeting in New York City, Clay Wilkes put his company’s latest innovation to the test. “We onboarded a company, funded the master funding account, created an individual account, and moved funds from the master funding account, and bought a gift card on Amazon,” he recalls. “Someone in …
Read More »Klarna Notes Growth and other Digital Transactions News briefs from 11/26/19
Installment-payments provider Klarna said it added 60,000 merchants to its network in 2019. More than 190,000 merchants offer Klarna as a payment option now. The number of monthly U.S. active users of the Klarna app, which enables them to shop with any store or brand online, increased almost 160% from July through September.Core-banking …
Read More »MoneyGram Expands Blockchain Services as Ripple Invests Another $20 Million
Following up on a $30-million investment in June, blockchain-services provider Ripple Labs Inc. has made another $20-million equity investment in wire-transfer provider MoneyGram International Inc., making Ripple the owner of nearly 10% of MoneyGram’s common stock. Announced Monday, the new investment is no surprise. The companies indicated in June it …
Read More »Discover Says Its Cardholders Can Use Their Rewards to Pay When Checking out With PayPal
The major payment card networks have long since come to terms with PayPal Holdings Inc., and now they’re finding ways to put that newfound friendship to use in burnishing their brands with cardholders. The latest example surfaced Monday with an announcement from Discover Financial Services that Discover cardholders can use …
Read More »FIS Adds P2P Tool and other Digital Transactions News briefs from 11/25/19
Processor Fidelity National Information Services Inc. (FIS) announced it has integrated IBM Corp.’s Safer Payments tool for its peer-to-peer payments products. Safer Payments relies on artificial intelligence and machine learning to sift through transactions for signs of fraud.Catch Hospitality Group, which operates the Catch NYC and Catch Steak restaurants, said it discovered malware on …
Read More »Rising Competition Is Pressuring ISVs, But Also Threatens Existing ISO Relationships
In recent years, independent sales organizations and payment processors have generated plenty of lucrative business by working with software developers and marketers—businesses usually known as independent software vendors, or ISVs. But now a report indicates the software market is getting increasingly crowded, a development ISVs fear is pressuring prices. It’s …
Read More »Church’s Chicken Investigating Possible Breach and other Digital Transactions News briefs from 11/22/19
The Church’s Chicken restaurant chain said it is investigating a possible breach of credit and debit card data at about 165 company-owned locations in 11 states. The company, which said it is working with federal authorities, has hired a cybersecurity firm and has notified the card networks and credit-reporting agencies.Recurring household bills …
Read More »A Tide of Online Fraud Engulfs a Group of Businesses Surveyed by American Express
Researchers and risk-control firms have been monitoring the increase in e-commerce fraud for years, and it’s hit home for a group of merchants surveyed by American Express Co. A newly released AmEx survey that included 400 business leaders says they estimate 27% of their firms’ annual online sales are fraudulent …
Read More »Stepping Further into E-Commerce, PayPal Pays $4 Billion for Honey Shopping Assistant
PayPal Holdings Inc. is betting big on its strategy of boosting its e-commerce presence with its approximately $4 billion acquisition of Honey Science Corp., a technology platform that helps consumers find offers and deals on popular e-commerce sites. Announced Wednesday afternoon, the deal envisions Honey tapping into the more than …
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