News

October, 2014

• 3 October

  Walgreens Adds Western Union Money-Transfer Services to More Than 7,650 Stores

  Finding a kiosk to make money transfers via Western Union Co. has become easier if there is a Walgreens or Duane Reade store nearby. Western Union and Walgreens announced this week a deal that makes Western Union money transfers available at the existing photo kiosks inside more than 7,650 Walgreens …

September, 2014

• 30 September

  In an About Face, eBay Announces It Will Spin off PayPal Next Year

  Somewhere, Carl Icahn is smiling. Ebay Inc.’s top management announced early Tuesday that the online auction pioneer is beginning preparations to spin off its PayPal Inc. unit some time in the second half of next year in a transaction that will result in eBay and PayPal operating as two independent, …
• 30 September

  MCX’s InComm Deal Might Give Currency To the Idea That Its Network Is Building Momentum

  Prepaid card services provider InComm Holdings Inc. announced today that it has struck a “strategic partnership” with Merchant Customer Exchange (MCX), parent firm of the fledgling mobile-payments network owned by merchants and recently branded as CurrentC. But exactly what the partnership will do for the long-aborning MCX is not clear. …
• 30 September

  BofA Becomes First Major Issuer to Begin Conversion to Debit Chip Cards

    Bank of America Corp. isn’t waiting for 2015 to convert its debit card portfolio to plastic that supports Europay-MasterCard-Visa (EMV) chip transactions. The Charlotte, N.C.-based banking giant announced Tuesday it will begin issuing debit chip cards to new customers in October, with cards for existing accountholders issued as these …
• 29 September

  Banks’ Out-of-Network ATM Fees and Overdraft Fees Again Set Records

  By Jim Daly Average out-of-network ATM fees set a record in 2014 for the eighth straight year by rising 5.3% to $4.35 per transaction, well above a 1.5% increase in 2013 but close to their 17-year average, according to Bankrate Inc.’s annual study of checking-account fees. Overdraft fees set a …
• 29 September

  Now the Top Phishing Target, Apple Could Draw More Cyber Crooks with Apple Pay

  Apple Inc. is selling a ton of its new iPhone 6 smart phones, but before launching the device earlier this month it had already attracted a much less desirable crowd of devotees: phishers. Among all brands targeted by these cybercriminals, Apple is now tops, and the company’s expected introduction next …
• 26 September

  COMMENTARY: Make No Mistake, Apple Pay Is the Great Enabler of Mobile Payments

  By Nate Stewart. Zing Apple Inc. has finally entered the mobile-payments game, and yes, it’s a big deal. The reaction, though, has been veering toward the negative aspects of Apple’s move and how it could hurt different industry players. The reality is quite the opposite. Apple has just become the …
• 25 September

  Research Finds That As Payments Get More Complex, So Do Security, Regulatory Issues

  Wal-Mart Stores Inc.’s announcement this week that it will be offering checking accounts to consumers through Green Dot Corp.’s GoBank mobile-banking services reopened old fissures between banks and non-banking companies over offering financial services to consumers, fissures that radiate out to the topic of payments security. At the Federal Reserve …
• 24 September

  Two Payments Companies Target Improving E-commerce and M-commerce Conversion Rates

  Frustration with typing in a 16-digit payment card number on a smart-phone screen leads to a lot of lost sales for e-commerce merchants. It’s a problem that two payments companies, offering different products, say they can help with. Making its U.S. debut first is PayItSimple USA Inc., an installment-payment service. …
• 24 September

  The Payments Industry Needs To Find Common Ground on Tokenization, Group Says

  Tokens, that is, tokens for securing electronic payments, almost became a household word two weeks ago when Apple Inc. introduced Apple Pay, a mobile-payments service that will rely heavily on tokens when it launches next month. The concept of tokenization, however, has been around for quite some time in the …