Digital Transactions Authoritative, insightful and timely information for payments professionals
The last mile is frequently the hardest part of any journey. The U.S. Treasury Department is wrestling with that phenomenon as it attempts to eliminate its remaining 5 million monthly checks for distribution of Social Security and other federal benefits by a looming March 1 deadline. Treasury’s Financial Management Service …
January, 2013
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9 January
Seeking Rapid Expansion in Growing E-Gift Card Market, InComm Snaps up Giftango
Atlanta-based InComm, a major provider of plastic gift card programs, will be gaining a bigger presence in the growing digital card market through its acquisition announced on Wednesday of Portland, Ore.-based Giftango Corp. Although both companies are involved in managing plastic and digital gift card programs for retailers, InComm had …
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8 January
Merchant, Credit Union Trade Groups Exchange Salvos Over Durbin’s Small-Issuer Impact
Have the Durbin Amendment’s interchange restrictions cut into debit card revenue at the nation’s smaller financial institutions? In the wake of a spin war touched off on Monday by a merchant-controlled lobbying group, the answer appears to be: It depends on whom you ask. Monday morning, the Washington, D.C.-based Merchants …
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4 January
E-Commerce Forges Ahead in a Turbulent Holiday Spending Environment
While many brick-and-mortar retailers were disappointed with sales for the 2012 holiday season, online merchants posted respectable gains in the mid-teens, according to new reports. Internet usage tracker comScore Inc. reported on Thursday that e-commerce volume hit $42.3 billion in the November-December holiday shopping season, up 13.8% over $37.2 billion …
December, 2012
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31 December
The Digital Transactions News Top 10 Stories of 2012
As we prepare to close out 2012, we thought we’d look back at the year’s major developments and pinpoint the ones that generated our biggest news stories. Here’s our list, arranged chronologically. Not surprisingly, given the events of the year in electronic payments, the list is dominated by mobile-payments and …
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31 December
Slate Tied to Dissident Shareholder Group Wins Seats on OTI Board
A slate of eight director candidates supported by a dissident shareholder group won election on Sunday at a special meeting of shareholders held by On Track Innovations Ltd., a vendor of contactless-payment solutions. The election, which expands the company’s board to 11 directors, hands control over the 22-year-old Israeli company …
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28 December
The FDIC Urges Banks To Ride Herd on Their Mobile-Payments Partners
Mobile payments are the all the rage in the banking, retailing, and software industries, but the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. is cautioning banks to keep a short leash on their mobile-payments vendors. The FDIC also warned in a recent report that banks’ role in mobile payments could be reduced as …
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27 December
The Federal Trade Commission Confirms Its Probe of Debit Card Network Rules
The Federal Trade Commission disclosed on Wednesday that it is investigating whether payment card network rules and practices violate the debit card transaction-routing provisions of the Durbin Amendment in 2010’s Dodd-Frank Act. It’s uncertain, however, whether the investigation goes beyond what Visa Inc. said the FTC requested of it in …
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20 December
Discover Prowls for More Deals; CEO Blasts Visa’s “Hijack-Transaction” Tactics
In the wake of its path-breaking partnership with PayPal Inc., Discover Financial Services is ready to do more deals with other companies that will add transaction volume or build its acceptance footprint, chief executive David Nelms indicated on Thursday. Nelms also told stock analysts that growth in the Discover-owned Pulse …
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19 December
Co-Op Boosts Debit Usage Among Infrequent Users with a Charitable, Not Personal, Appeal
While some big banks pull back on debit card promotion, smaller institutions are finding ways to boost usage among customers who have cards but seldom use them. And some are finding out that, perhaps because of the time of the year, charitable appeals may work better than personal rewards. Co-Op …