Digital Transactions Authoritative, insightful and timely information for payments professionals
With restaurants in most major markets across the country forced to shut down on-premise dining because of the Covid-19 outbreak, online ordering, takeout, and delivery services are suddenly in the spotlight as local restaurants and other small, independent establishments grasp at technology to stay alive. That’s an immediate opportunity for …
April, 2020
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14 April
eBay Names Walmart Exec as New CEO and other Digital Transactions News briefs from 4/14/20
EBay Inc. named former Walmart Inc. executive Jamie Iannone chief executive officer, effective April 27. Iannone, who will succeed interim CEO Scott Schenkel, most recently served as chief operating officer of Walmart eCommerce and was at one time chief executive of SamsClub.com. EBay indicated earlier this year it has plans to …
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13 April
Visa Warns E-Commerce Merchants Using Older Versions of Magento To Upgrade Quickly
Visa Inc. is urging e-commerce merchants still using Adobe Inc.’s Magento 1 platform to upgrade to the newer Magento Commerce 2.3 because Magento will stop supporting Magento 1 at the end of June. Merchants continuing to use the older platform will fall out of compliance with the Payment Card Industry …
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13 April
Groceries Are Up, Fuel Is Down, According to a PSCU Study of Credit And Debit Card Spending
More consumers appear to be keeping their credit cards in their wallets when they shop. Credit union service organization PSCU says its data show that overall credit card spend among consumers who use credit and debit cards issued by credit unions working with PSCU is down 29.3% for the week …
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13 April
Stimulus Payments Begin and other Digital Transactions News briefs from 4/13/20
The Internal Revenue Service has begun sending $1,200 stimulus payments to individuals as provided for under the CARES Act. Payments are first going to about 60 million persons for whom the IRS has bank-account information, making direct deposit possible. Others will receive checks. The process is expected to take until April 20, …
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10 April
Some Small Businesses Are Seeing Higher Sales During Pandemic, ETA-Strawhecker Survey Finds
The screeching slowdown in consumer spending caused by efforts to stem the spread of the Covid-19 pandemic has hit U.S. small businesses particularly hard, but there are some bright spots, according to the Electronic Transactions Association and merchant-acquiring research and consulting firm The Strawhecker Group. The survey of more than …
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10 April
Kount Releases A Weekly E-Commerce Purchase Tracker and other Digital Transactions News briefs from 4/10/20
Fraud prevention firm Kount Inc. released a weekly tracker of e-commerce purchase trends. In mid-March it showed that U.S. online sales of home office furniture and electronics increased 54%.Installment payments provider Klarna Bank AB said data from consumer use of its shopping app shows that e-commerce purchases are shifting to health and beauty and …
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10 April
COMMENTARY: Expect Lucrative Perks As Cobranded Travel Cards Try to Stem a Customer Exodus
The Covid-19 crisis is making cobranded travel credit cards less valuable. Demand for travel has taken a nosedive amid flight restrictions to international destinations, mandatory stay-at-home orders, and rising alarm over the coronavirus pandemic. Airlines have had to cancel flights and ground thousands of aircraft. Airline lounges and hotels have …
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9 April
After Strong First-Quarter Growth, the Coronavirus Takes the Steam Out of the ACH
Like other payment networks, the automated clearing house was going great guns until mid-March, but thanks to the Covid-19 pandemic it’s now in the midst of a slowdown. ACH governing body Nacha reported Thursday that total volume rose 7.1% year-over-year in the first quarter to 6.4 billion transactions, up by …
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9 April
An Analysis of Planned Changes to Network Rates Yields a Deep Impact for U.S. Merchants
Visa Inc. and Mastercard Inc. have postponed their planned U.S. interchange revisions until July, but when these changes do take effect the net impact on merchants will be deep, according to an analysis released by CMSPi, an Atlanta-based global merchant payments consultancy. Indeed, the new pricing planned by the two …