News

August, 2022

• 16 August

  Average ATM Withdrawals Are Bigger, But Transactions Still Lag Pre-Pandemic Levels

  

  ATM traffic worldwide is on the rebound after two years of pandemic, but it will take years for cash withdrawal transactions to return to 2019 levels, according to “Global ATM Markets and Forecasts to 2027,” a report released this week by RBR, a London-based research firm. ATM activity declined in …
• 16 August

  Choice Hotels Adds Choice Direct Pay Billing Option And Other Digital Transactions News briefs from 8/16/22

  

  Choice Hotels International Inc. launched Choice Direct Pay, which allows businesses to make reservations for employees and guests at multiple properties with billing through a centralized invoice. The service works with more than 5,000 U.S. properties.Grocery Outlet Holding Corp. announced customers can order groceries for delivery from nearly 400 stores via online-delivery …
• 15 August

  Forage Joins a Small Group of SNAP EBT Online Payment Processors

  

  Organizations hoping for another choice when selecting a vendor to process their online electronic benefits transfer transactions for consumers using SNAP can now opt for Forage. San Francisco-based Forage said the U.S. Department of Agriculture approved it as a third-party payment processor for the SNAP program, the shortened term for …
• 15 August

  Credit Card Loans Increase for BNPL Provider Bread—But So Do Net Losses

  

  Bread Financial Holdings Inc. on Monday released a performance update for July, indicating it posted credit card and other loans totaling $17.8 billion last month, a 12% year-over-year increase. The Columbus, Ohio-based provider of personalized payment, lending, and savings solutions said average credit card and other loans for the month …
• 15 August

  BankiFi Raises $4.8 Million And Other Digital Transactions News briefs from 8/15/22

  

  Technology startup BankiFi, which seeks to enable payments and banking functions for small businesses, announced it has received a $4.8 million investment to fund its expansion into North America. Praetura Ventures led the funding round.Focused Labs, a developer of custom payments software, said it has joined the Stripe Partner Ecosystem. Stripe Inc.’s …
• 12 August

  FDX Seeks to Make Open Banking More Accessible With Its Standard And API

  

  While the recent partnership between fintech Wise US Inc., which specializes in cross-border payments, and Plaid Inc. is another example of the momentum open banking is gaining globally, one overlooked element of the deal is the role the open-banking standard developed by the Financial Data Exchange played in making the …
• 12 August

  With New Funding, Central Payments Is Spun Out and other Digital Transactions News briefs from 8/12/22

  

  Central Payments, a unit of Central Bank of Kansas City, completed a $30 million funding round, which was led by Castle Creek Capital and with more investment from Launchpad Capital. The funding spins the company out from Central Bank.PayGround, a digital wallet for medical bills, launched a “get healthy now, pay …
• 11 August

  COMMENTARY: The Strange Compatibility of Human Connection And QR Codes

  

  At the end of 2021, comedian Grace Mulvey brought smiles to many on Twitter when she reflected on the unexpected rise of a technology that was laughed off by many. “I can’t think of anyone who has had a better year than the QR code. What a comeback.”  While our …
• 11 August

  BitPay Launches a Rewards Program for Its Crypto-Based Prepaid Card

  

  The drive to encourage consumers to use cryptocurrency to pay for transactions at the point-of-sale shifted into a higher gear Wednesday as BitPay Inc. announced the launch of a cash-back rewards program for its prepaid card. Cardholders, who will be automatically enrolled in the rewards program, can earn up to …
• 11 August

  Marqeta Posts Big Numbers As Gardner Says He’s Moving Out of His CEO Role

  

  The card-issuing platform Marqeta Inc. on Wednesday reported processing volume of $40 billion for the June quarter, a 53% increase over the same time last year, but the 12-year-old company also announced its founding chief executive is leaving that position. Jason Gardner, a well-known payments entrepreneur, said he will move …