For the second consecutive quarterly earnings call, executives at Discover Financial Services had little to say about the company’s financial performance, plans going forward, or anything else. With a proposed $35.3-billion merger with Capital One Financial Corp. hanging over them, Discover executives again took no questions, and equity analysts were …
Read More »Faster Payments Leap Ahead As Nacha Sees a 47% Jump in Same-Day ACH Volumes
Since the 2016 launch of same-day automated clearing house payments, the payment type has done nothing but grow. The 2024 second quarter is no exception, with the latest figures showing 292.3 million transactions, a 46.6% increase from 199.4 million in 2023’s second quarter, according to Nacha, which administers the ACH …
Read More »Cash App a Google Play Payment Now and other Digital Transactions News briefs from 7/18/24
Block Inc.’s Cash App announced it will be a payments option on Google Play, an Android-based e-commerce store offering apps and other content and accessed by more than 2.5 billion users monthly. Payments provider Repay Holdings Corp. said borrowers will be able to pay mortgage servicers with debit cards through an integration by Repay …
Read More »Data Compromises Have Dipped, But The Running Total Remains Scary
Instances of data compromise in the United States were down in the second quarter, but the good news pretty much ends there, according to information released early Wednesday by the Identity Theft Resource Center. Cybercriminals pulled off 732 total compromises online in the second quarter, a total that was down …
Read More »Jifiti Leverages Digital Wallets to Bring Embedded Finance to the Point of Sale
Jifiti, a provider of embedded-financing solutions, is giving a new twist to the buy now, pay later trend with the introduction of Tap Now, Pay Later, a financing tool for large-ticket purchases. Examples include home-remodeling projects, in which funds are loaded into a consumer’s digital wallet via a virtual credit …
Read More »U.S. Bancorp Merchant Revenue up and other Digital Transactions News briefs from 7/17/24
U.S. Bancorp generated $454 million in merchant processing services revenue in the second quarter, up 4.1% from $436 million in the year-ago quarter. Private-label card specialist Synchrony Financial posted $3.7 billion in second-quarter revenue, up 12.1% from $3.3 billion in the 2023 second quarter. Net income of $643 million increased 13% from $569 …
Read More »Eye On BNPL: Sezzle Speaks Spanish; Affirm Partners With Newegg
Buy now, pay later provider Sezzle Inc. has added Spanish-language capability to its app. The addition is expected to broaden Sezzle’s appeal among Spanish-speaking consumers in the United States. There are more than 40 million Spanish-speaking consumers in the United States, according to Sezzle, while Spanish-speaking customers represent about 22% …
Read More »Blue Payment Agency’s Shopify Workaround Using Authorize.net
Merchants selling weapons like knives and collectible swords often have difficulty peddling them online, but Blue Payment Agency Inc. has launched a service to help do that while getting access to Shopify Inc.’s e-commerce platform. Announced Tuesday, the service from Windham, Maine-based Blue Payment Agency enables knife-selling Shopify merchants to …
Read More »British Regulators Eye Digital Wallets and other Digital Transactions News briefs from 7/16/24
Two British regulatory agencies will examine the practices and policies of digital wallets offered by technology firms, according to a report on SeekingAlpha.com. Specifically, the Financial Conduct Authority and the Payment Systems Regulator want to know the benefits and risks of digital wallets. Restaurant reservation platform OpenTable said it will offer eligible Visa Inc. …
Read More »Eye on E-Commerce: U.S. Online Retail to Top $1.2 Trillion; Shopify Enlists Red Van
U.S. online retail sales will continue their steady growth and continue to snare more overall retails sales, suggests the “2024 Online Retail Report” from FTI Consulting Inc. The research forecasts $1.2 trillion in U.S. e-commerce sales this year, up 9.1% from 2023’s $1.1 trillion. That forecast comes as online sales …
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