Digital Transactions Authoritative, insightful and timely information for payments professionals
Mastercard Inc. said it is purchasing Ethoca Inc., a fraud-mitigation firm, for an undisclosed amount. The deal is expected to close in the second quarter. Ethoca works with more than 5,000 merchants and 4,000 financial institutions. Mastercard intends to expand Ethoca’s capabilities and combine the company with its current security …
March, 2019
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12 March
Lyft Eyes Ways To Lower Payment-Processing Costs as It Preps for an IPO
With $2.28 billion in losses over the past three years, ride-share provider Lyft Inc. is looking to cut costs—and payment-card acceptance expenses won’t be spared. San Francisco-based Lyft outlined several initiatives it already has started or is planning in a filing earlier this month with the Securities and Exchange Commission …
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11 March
Mastercard Bails on Bidding War With Visa for Earthport, Plans To Buy Transfast Instead
Mastercard Inc. has called a halt to its bidding war with Visa Inc. over cross-border business-to-business payments processor Earthport PLC and instead plans to acquire another company in the space, Transfast Remittance LLC. Mastercard announced a tentative deal to buy New York City-based money-transfer provider Transfast Friday. Transfast is a …
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11 March
EVO Payments Adds Another European Payment Company
EVO Payments Inc. continues its European expansion with the acquisition of Way2Pay, an Ireland-based payment gateway. Announced Monday, the deal gives the Melville, N.Y.-based company entry to integrated payments for schools and clubs in Ireland and the United Kingdom. Terms were not disclosed. “We see significant value in expanding Way2Pay …
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11 March
Repay Payment Volume Increases 42% and other Digital Transactions News briefs from 3/11/19
Repay Holdings LLC said its 2018 payment volume increased 42% to $7.5 billion from $5.2 billion in 2017. Its net income increased 12% to $10.5 million from $9.4 million. Repay is in the midst of a pending merger with Thunder Bridge Acquisition Ltd. Net Element Inc. unit Unified Payments will …
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8 March
COMMENTARY: Convenience And Security Require Education And Technology
A bank’s ability to deliver convenience and security is a high-stakes balancing act. Consumers value secure applications, but they don’t want the hassle that often accompanies multiple points of authentication. They want easy-to-use applications that facilitate fast and seamless financial transactions. There has been no shortage of data breaches over …
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8 March
Mastercard Leaves Earthport to Visa to Buy Transfast and other Digital Transactions News briefs from 3/8/19
Mastercard Inc. has abandoned its pursuit of cross-border specialist Earthport PLC and instead has agreed to acquire New York City-based Transfast Remittance LLC, a cross-border account-to-account money-transfer network. Terms of the deal, which is expected to close in 2019’s second half, were not disclosed. Visa Inc. last month made an …
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7 March
Overstock-Backed Blockchain Firm To Power Multi-National Caribbean Digital Currency
American vacationers flock every year to the scenic islands of the Caribbean, and some day they might be using a digital version of the East Caribbean dollar to pay for a Rum Punch or Ting With a Sting. The Eastern Caribbean Central Bank, the monetary authority for the eight-country Eastern …
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7 March
Chase and Wells Expected To Give a Big Boost to Cardlytics, But Revenue Growth Will Lag
Cardlytics Inc. continues to ramp up its rewards platform to accommodate an expected tens of millions of new users coming from new big-bank clients, but revenue growth will lag customer growth for some time, company executives signaled this week. Atlanta-based Cardlytics’s main product, Cardlytics Direct, provides merchant-funded offers to consumers …
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7 March
An Analyst Argues Historic Patterns Could Augur a Soaring Price for Bitcoin
Could the price of Bitcoin be headed back up into the stratosphere? One noted analyst is saying it’s a distinct possibility. Based on what he sees as recurring patterns in the cryptocurrency’s pricing history, Michael Graham says Bitcoin could be starting its upward climb now toward the neighborhood of $20,000, …