The Merchants Payments Coalition released a 30-second TV ad that says the Credit Card Competition Act, a measure that would stipulate merchants have credit card routing choices, would prohibit China’s credit card network UnionPay from processing U.S. credit card transactions. Currently, no regulation prohibits that the MPC says. The CCCA, if passed, would …
Read More »Time Will Tell on How Soon Pay by Bank Goes Mainstream
Open banking, the ability for third-party developers to access financial data in traditional banking systems, as defined by Stripe Inc., may provide one component for a new payment type, at least one that has limited use today. Pay by bank, a payment method that enables an online payment without the …
Read More »COMMENTARY: Don’t Take It Any More! It’s Time for the Payments Industry to Fight Back (Part II)
(Editor’s note: This is Part II of a two-part article. Part I appeared Thursday.) Interchange fees paid by merchants are the credit card industry’s second-largest revenue source. For debit cards and neobanks, these fees are a primary revenue source. The 2010 Dodd-Frank Act imposed price controls on debit interchange fees …
Read More »In an Abbreviated Call, Discover Sticks to the Numbers And Stays Mum About Cap One
Executives at Discover Financial Services Inc. early Thursday cut short their first-quarter 2024 earnings call, saying in advance they would not take questions after the presentation. Instead, equity analysts listening to the presentation were told to direct questions to Discover’s investor-relations team. On the call, executives duly reported a significant …
Read More »COMMENTARY: Don’t Take It Any More! It’s Time for the Payments Industry to Fight Back (Part I)
The Cato Institute’s Nicholas Anthony warned recently that the Biden Administration is waging “a war on (payments-industry) prices.” The payments industry provides services funded by a range of fees paid by consumers and businesses. Demagogic regulators and politicians pillory industry fees as exploitative, as “junk fees,” and “a tax.” These …
Read More »PAX’s Network Tech and other Digital Transactions News briefs from 4/18/24
Point-of-sale technology provider PAX Technology Inc. introduced Airlink, networking technology that provides payment connectivity in outdoor settings and other venues where wireless Internet or other network service may be unavailable or insufficient. Mastercard Inc. introduced what it calls a mobile virtual card app, which is aimed at financial institutions and supports the loading …
Read More »Klarna Gets Set to Launch a New U.S. Credit Card ‘Over the Next Few Months’
The buy now, pay later specialist Klarna AB signaled its intention Wednesday to issue a new credit card in the U.S. market. The company said it has opened a waitlist for the product, which it calls a “new and improved Klarna Card.” The new Visa card, which does not offer …
Read More »Aurora Releases the Arise Platform; FastSpring Adds Apple Pay and Pix
Evolving merchant expectations are a primary factor in Aurora Payments’ newly released Arise Payment Platform, which is intended to match sellers’ needs, says Brian Goudie, Aurora chief executive. Announced Tuesday, the Arise platform includes same-day onboarding capability, surcharging, cash discounting, and dual- pricing options, Aurora says. It also offers acceptance …
Read More »Nium’s New Zealand Expansion and other Digital Transactions News briefs from 4/16/24
Cross-border payments platform Nium has registered as a financial-service provider in New Zealand. The company, which maintains headquarters offices in San Francisco and Singapore, claims licenses and registrations in more than 40 countries. Payments provider Dejavoo announced a corporate rebranding and an overhauled Web site. Cigo Tracker, a delivery app, released a digital-tipping application …
Read More »Restaurant Price Strategies Come Under Fire As Advocates Push to Pass a Credit Card Bill
As restaurants turn to surcharging and dynamic pricing to offset rising operating costs, consumer backlash is raising concerns the practice could negatively affect customer loyalty and ultimately, restaurant profits. The backlash comes hard on the heels of the Electronic Payments Coalition’s attacks on restaurant surcharges and other price increases. The …
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