Thursday , January 16, 2025

Issuing/Originating

After Strong First-Quarter Growth, the Coronavirus Takes the Steam Out of the ACH

Like other payment networks, the automated clearing house was going great guns until mid-March, but thanks to the Covid-19 pandemic it’s now in the midst of a slowdown. ACH governing body Nacha reported Thursday that total volume rose 7.1% year-over-year in the first quarter to 6.4 billion transactions, up by …

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An Analysis of Planned Changes to Network Rates Yields a Deep Impact for U.S. Merchants

Visa Inc. and Mastercard Inc. have postponed their planned U.S. interchange revisions until July, but when these changes do take effect the net impact on merchants will be deep, according to an analysis released by CMSPi, an Atlanta-based global merchant payments consultancy. Indeed, the new pricing planned by the two …

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The Fallout From ID Fraud And Account Takeovers Includes a Lot More P2P Payment Fraud

Losses from identity fraud grew 13% in 2019 to $16.9 billion even though instances of ID fraud fell nearly 10%, according to the newly released 2020 Identity Fraud Report from Javelin Strategy & Research. The study also found that person-to-person payments fraud increased 733% from 2016 to 2019. Based on …

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Card Networks Up Canadian Contactless Transaction Limits To Limit Physical Contact

Contactless payments already capture a big share of point-of-sale purchases in Canada, and that share is sure to grow with recent announcements by Visa Inc. and Mastercard Inc. that they are raising their contactless transaction limits to C$250 to limit the handling of cards that could spread the coronavirus, according …

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Eye on Merchants: An ISO’s Restaurant Service; Hilton, AmEx Donate Rooms; Visa’s $210 Million Commitment

As many merchants, especially those in hospitality, are challenged by slumping consumer demand amid the Covid-19 outbreak, payments companies are developing new resources and designating millions in aid. Restaurants, in particular, are experiencing steep drops in demand as consumers abide by shelter-at-home directives. They’re closing their dine-in spaces and, if …

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Consumers Warm to Digital Payments and other Digital Transactions News briefs from 4/2/20

Seventy-three percent of U.S. adults say they would be more or much more likely to use digital payments or digital banking services during a time of social distancing, according to a survey of 1,043 persons aged 18 and up by The Harris Poll on behalf of William Mills Agency. The canvass took …

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Another Marriott Data Breach and other Digital Transactions News briefs from 4/1/20

In its second major data breach in two years, hotel giant Marriott International Inc. disclosed a “property system incident” affecting personal information on 5.2 million guests. Fraudsters apparently gained access to Marriott’s systems in mid-January using the login credentials of two employees at a franchised property. Marriott, which said it discovered the …

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PayPal Announces Fee And Loan Relief for Merchants Impacted by Covid-19

As the Covid-19 pandemic impacts businesses worldwide, global payments companies are starting to respond with relief. The latest is PayPal Holdings Inc., which on Tuesday announced several measures aimed at cutting fees and deferring loan payments for merchants. More than 24 million businesses accept payments or other services from PayPal. …

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Visa Volume Down 7% and other Digital Transactions News briefs from 3/31/20

With the coronavirus pandemic freezing economic activity in the U.S. and many other countries, Visa Inc. reported in a regulatory filing that U.S. credit card payment volume was down 7% year-over-year for the March 1-28 period while debit payments were down 1%. Cross-border volume on a constant-dollar basis was off 19%. …

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Pandemic Scammers Emerge and other Digital Transactions News briefs from 3/20/20

TriNet Group Inc., a human-resources software provider, said a wave of scammers are exploiting the Covid-19 pandemic to gull people into buying so-called cures for the disease (no cure yet exists), as well as fake testing kits and vaccines.The Western Union Co. reported its digital money-transfer business “has continued to experience …

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Digital Transactions