Digital Transactions Authoritative, insightful and timely information for payments professionals

February, 2021

• 23 February

  With a Federal Lawsuit, Intuit Challenges the Card Networks’ Interchange Regime

  

  Lawsuits brought by merchants against Visa Inc. and Mastercard Inc. have become almost routine for the two network giants, but now they face an unusual action—a suit from Intuit Inc., which is not only a card-accepting merchant but also an independent sales organization and payment facilitator. Filed Feb. 19 in …
• 23 February

  NMI Acquires USAePay and other Digital Transactions News briefs from 2/23/21

  

  Gateway provider NMI said it acquired USAePay in a deal that will strengthen NMI’s coverage in verticals, including retail and restaurant, where USAePay has had success. The deal, terms of which were not disclosed, also will help create a stronger omnichannel capability for NMI. The combined company had more than $100 billion in annual …
• 22 February

  ‘We’re Building the Plane While We’re Flying It,’ Says Green Dot’s Boss About Soaring Go2Bank

  

  Green Dot Corp.’s big bet on the underbanked has gotten off to a flying start, to hear the company’s top executives tell it. The bet is on Go2Bank, a mobile bank account that offers credit and debit cards, direct deposit, and a savings account. “It’s been great to see the …
• 22 February

  Sky Systemz’s New POS Terminal Takes Aim at Merchant Price Sensitivity

  

  In a nod to merchants’ need for more favorable point-of-sale pricing as a way to counterbalance the decline in business many have incurred as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic, cloud-based POS-services provider Sky Systemz has introduced the Sky Terminal. Priced at $749, Sky Systemz’s contactless point-of-sale terminal features a …
• 22 February

  Eye on P2P Payments: MoneyGram’s Digital Business Grows 79% And Zelle Finds Another Bank Home

  

  MoneyGram International Inc. reported its digital business generated $57.4 million in the fourth quarter, up 79% year-over-year. Real-time transfers via Visa Direct transactions grew 650%. Meanwhile, Rising Bank, a division of Midwest BankCentre, has added Zelle, a person-to-person payments service, to its product roster. Dallas-based MoneyGram said MoneyGram Online, its …
• 22 February

  Another Joins Isaacman Space Venture and other Digital Transactions News from 2/22/21

  

  The planned Inspiration4 project, the first space flight with an all-civilian crew, added its second crew member, Hayley Arceneaux, a physician assistant in Memphis. Crew commander is Shift4 Payments Inc. chief executive Jared Isaacman.Credit union service organization PSCU said spending made with debit cards increased 12.5% for the week ending Feb. 14 compared to …
• 19 February

  Pandemic Or No, Boomers Are Still the Slowest to Adopt Mobile Banking And Contactless

  

  While the Covid-19 pandemic has deepened consumers’ reliance on contactless payments, as well as digital and mobile banking, a generation gap exists when it comes adoption of those technologies, separate reports from Oxygen, a San Francisco-based financial-platform provider, and digital consulting firm Mobiquity, have found. Of the more than 1,000 …
• 19 February

  Fully 30% of Retailers Plan POS Software Replacement in Next 12 Months, Report Finds

  

  As digital commerce sees greater consumer adoption, the impact is being felt at the point of sale. Retailers’ top priority for 2021 is to grow or enhance their digital-commerce efforts, with 85% citing this ambition in the 2021 POS & Customer Engagement Survey Report released this week by Retail Consulting …
• 19 February

  Promise Network Raises $20 Million in Funding and other Digital Transactions News briefs from 2/19/21

  

  Promise Network Inc., a startup specializing in government-related payments such as utilities, child support, and parking tickets, said it has raised more than $20 million in a Series A funding round led by Kapor Capital and XYZ Venture Capital.A survey by payroll platform Everee Inc. of 400 U.S. independent contractors found that …
• 18 February

  Having Exhausted Covid Scams, Criminals Are Returning to E-Commerce Fraud And Malware Attacks

  

  Now that criminals have milked the bulk of their opportunities related to pandemic relief efforts, they are turning their attention back to their old standby, payments-related fraud. Not surprisingly, their target of choice is e-commerce, which has rocketed due to restrictions on the number of consumers allowed in physical stores and …