News

October, 2008

• 17 October

  Western Union’s Expedited Offering Nears the Starting Gate

  It's been a year since wire-transfer market leader The Western Union Co. announced that it would introduce an expedited bill-payment service with technology provider Yodlee Inc. that banks and credit unions could offer their customers (Digital Transactions News, Oct. 10, 2007). With the operational work nearing completion, the first financial …
• 16 October

  Study Shows Growth for E-Payments, But Paper Lurks Under the Hood

  Many studies have documented the rise of card, automated clearing house, and other forms of electronic payments, but a new one from Hitachi Consulting and the Bank Administration Institute sheds some light on just how consumers divide their payments behavior. According to the nationwide study of 3,308 consumers who completed …
• 15 October

  Contactless Payment Stickers Appear To Be Set for Prime Time

  So-called stickers, or chip-and-antenna inlays that can be affixed to mobile phones or other tokens to turn them into contactless-payment devices, are showing signs of developing from a novelty to a commercial product. CPI Card Group, a card manufacturer in Littleton, Colo., expects to ship “several million” bank-card-branded payment stickers …
• 15 October

  Off-eBay Volume Tops Auction Payments for the First Time at PayPal

  After months of steady gains, the merchant-services portion of PayPal Inc.'s transaction volume topped the volume coming from eBay Inc auctions for the first time in the third quarter, eBay reported on Wednesday. In line with this result, the online auctioneer also reported PayPal has been adopted by 35 of …
• 14 October

  Better ATM: Amazon Gift Cards Now, Network-Branded Cards Later

  A 3-year-old technology firm called Better ATM Services Inc. that configures ATMs to dispense prepaid cards is moving beyond its Phoenix-area proving grounds with local restaurants and into a test involving Amazon.com gift cards. If it works, distribution of network-branded prepaid cards could be next. During the upcoming holiday-season pilot …
• 14 October

  Citi’s Mobile P-to-P Service Could See Commercial Launch in ’09

  A person-to-person payment pilot based on mobile phones, launched on Tuesday by Citigroup Inc. and Obopay Inc., will become a commercial service in the U.S. next year if goals concerning user counts and transaction volumes are met, says a Citi executive. The pilot, which follows a trial the two companies …
• 9 October

  After a Long Delay, NACHA Eyes Mid ’09 As Soonest Start for DCT

  While formal bank recruitment hasn't started yet, an 18-month pilot to test the idea of transmitting check data as automated clearing house files is likely to get under way no sooner than the middle of next year, says a senior executive at NACHA, which is sponsoring the project. “[That] would …
• 9 October

  Time Is Short, But Revolution Money Sticks to Million-Merchant Goal

  Revolution Money Inc., the upstart that bills itself as merchants' low-cost alternative to the established card brands, this week announced that Murphy Oil USA Inc. is now accepting its RevolutionCard. It's a notable win for Revolution Money as Murphy has nearly 1,000 gas stations in 20 states, most located in …
• 8 October

  More Big Merchants Comply, But PCI Likely Still Foreign to Small Fry

  New data from Visa Inc. show more of the largest merchants now meet the Payment Card Industry data-security standard, or PCI. But the level of validated PCI compliance among small merchants?the overwhelming majority of businesses that accept credit and debit cards?likely remains much lower. Visa's latest figures show 81% of …
• 8 October

  Plenty of Upside for eBay in Bill Me Later Deal, Experts Say

  Ebay Inc.'s $945 million acquisition of online payment processor Bill Me Later Inc., announced this week (Digital Transactions News, Oct. 6), places a powerful payment-generating tool in the online auctioneer's hands and simultaneously denies that tool to competitors like Google Inc. and Amazon.com Inc., experts tell Digital Transactions News. And …