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In anticipation of the swelling of check-image volume that Check 21 is expected to unleash, Viewpointe, a national image-exchange network and archive for electronic checks serving 10 banks, has engaged Accenture, a technology-services and consulting firm, to help prepare the company's platform to handle large image-exchange volumes. Viewpointe's archive stores …
Read More »Acquirers’ AmEx Fees Could Offset Losses to the T&E Giant
Bank card acquirers are increasingly tacking on fees to handle American Express Co. transactions at terminals they deploy for merchants, a tactic that may work in their favor as AmEx signs on more banks as issuers of the T&E company's products. That's among the major findings of the most recent …
Read More »InphoMatch Gets Set to Catch the Wireless Wave in Premium Content
The largest processor in the U.S. cross-carrier short-message service (SMS) market is getting set to enter the market for premium content services, also known as MMS (multimedia services), just as wireless carriers are beginning to introduce new billing capabilities to handle the high-margin product. Chantilly, Va.-based InphoMatch Inc. has formed …
Read More »TransFirst’s Fifth Third Deal Bulks up Its Processing Heft
TransFirst, a Dallas-based merchant processor, expects its acquisition of the third-party processing business of Fifth Third Bank Processing Solutions to drive down its transaction costs and give it a sharper edge when it comes to pricing. The deal, announced yesterday and expected to close April 1, will add 90 million …
Read More »McDonald’s Expands Its Test of Self-Serve Kiosks
Having spread rapidly in the past year at airports, self-service transaction technology is starting to make inroads in the lodging and fast-food industries. McDonald's Corp., Oak Brook, Ill., has tested kiosks at a handful of its corporate-owned stores in Raleigh, N.C., and in Denver, and within the past few weeks …
Read More »The Wal-Mart Case Hits MasterCard with a $763 Million Charge
MasterCard International took a $763.5 million charge against earnings in 2003 to account for its share of the settlement of the massive Wal-Mart class-action suit, documents filed yesterday reveal. As a result of the charge, the bank card association sustained a $385.8 million loss last year, compared to net income …
Read More »With Mperia, BitPass Enters the Red-Hot Online Music Market
Two weeks after its launch, a Web site created by BitPass Inc., a Palo Alto, Calif.-based micropayments startup, has attracted nearly 100 bands and other musicians selling single songs and tracks at prices ranging from a quarter to $1.50. Designed for so-called independent musicians seeking an outlet for their music …
Read More »Visa Names Rodrigues to Succeed Williamson as CEO
Christopher J. Rodrigues, group chief executive of U.K.-based banking firm Bradford & Bingley, is the new president and chief executive of Visa International, the bank card network announced today. Rodrigues, 54, will take over June 1 from William Boardman, chairman of Visas International's board, who is serving as interim chief …
Read More »Target Will Ditch Its Chip, But Not E-Coupons
Target Corp., which has opened more than 9 million accounts for its cobranded Visa smart card since the program's launch in November 2001, has announced it is shutting down the chip function on the card owing to lack of use. Target said in a statement today the phase-out will begin …
Read More »First Data Completes Its Merger with Concord
As expected, First Data Corp. completed its merger today with Concord EFS Inc. in a deal valued at $7 billion, based on the Feb. 25 First Data closing price of $40.79 per share. The acquisition of Concord means the combined company has 30,000 worldwide employees. It expects to take in …
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