China UnionPay (CUP) has launched automatic teller machine service in South Africa in alliance with the Standard Bank of South Africa. The cooperation would allow CUP cards to be accepted at 5,100 ATMs under the Standard Bank, which would benefit cardholders while in South Africa to watch the 2010 FIFA World Cup.
ACH payment volume increased by more than 475 million transactions in 2009, bringing year-end total transaction volume to 18.76 billion, a 2.6% increase over 2008 activity. This demonstrates strong volume increases in electronic payments such as consumer Internet transactions and B2B transactions. This, according to the NACHA Electronic Payments Association, also shows a decline in the unauthorized debit volume with ACH debits returned as unauthorized in 2009 having declined 9.6% since 2008 to now only constitute for 0.02% of total Network volume. ACH native electronic payments increased by 4.15% in 2009, showing an increased preference for non-check, fully-electronic, payment options and constituted for 12.19 billion transactions on the ACH Network. Meanwhile, Consumer Internet Transactions were up 8.75% to nearly 2.4 billion payments for 9.7% increase over 2008 and International ACH Transactions totaled 1.7 million with a dollar value of $7.4 billion.
NHN Corporation has partnered with online monetization solution provider PlaySpan to enable players of Karos Online, the top free-to-play 3D MMORPG in Korea to purchase and experience premium content. PlaySpan’s patent-pending in-game digital goods commerce and micropayment platform enables game publishers and developers to generate new revenues, acquire new users, and extend the loyalty of existing users. PlaySpan also provides global payment solutions through its UltimatePay product, which enables users to make safe, convenient, and friendly in-app purchases using over 85 global payment methods in 180 countries. UltimatePay includes PlaySpan’s ULTIMATE GAME CARD, which is a pre-paid card available in over 45,000 retail locations across North America and growing rapidly worldwide. UltimatePay provides over 85 global payment methods including mobile, cash based, and the top selling Ultimate Game Card. UltimatePay enables players to quickly and easily make in-game purchases.
TX-based non-bank ATM provider Cardtronics has been selected as
the exclusive ATM managed services provider for all US Travelex ATMs.
Travelex is the world’s largest foreign exchange specialist with over
760 retail branches in more than 26 countries, at key airport, seaport,
rail and tourist locations. Under the terms of the multi-year
agreement, Cardtronics will provide comprehensive ATM services including
transaction processing, cash management, cash replenishment, monitoring
and maintenance. The ATMs are located in high-traffic locations,
including over one dozen major international airports and a variety of
high-profile retail and business centers.
The Mexican House of Representatives has unanimously passed a resolution denouncing U.S. states that impose remittance taxes, or are currently considering such legislation, and calling upon the Mexican government to take trade measures against those states. The Mexican House of Representatives has called upon the Mexican Government to establish trade measures against U.S. states that have adopted a fee to remittances being sent to Mexico. Such trade measures would be imposed in states like Oklahoma as a way to respond and retaliate against this new law. Mexican Legislators consider this bill as “immoral, abusive and harmful” act against immigrantsô rights.
Mexico is the number-one international trade partner of both Oklahoma and Kansas, the foreign market where they export the majority of products and services.
MBNA has teamed with American Airlines and American Express to introduce the American Airlines “AAdvantage” American Express Credit Card. When signing up to the new product, every customer spending £250 within the first 90 days of opening an account will receive a sky high 5,000 AAdvantage® bonus miles. The “AAdvantage” credit card allows cardholders to earn three “AAdvantage” miles for all supermarket, petrol and American Airlines purchases within the first six months of the account opening while other card purchases or purchases made after the first six months will earn 1.5 AAdvantage miles for every dollar spent. The card will also offer 0% on all American Airlines flights purchased with the card for 12 months from the date the account is opened, and customers will be eligible for a range of exclusive promotions throughout the year. This rate is also available on balance transfers and money transfers for six months from the date the account is opened, after which will be the typical rate of 17.9% APR (variable).
Foreign currency exchange Travelex and Visa are offering the “Limited Edition Travelex Cash Passport” in South African Rand and British Pounds.
For football fans travelling to South Africa this summer, the South African Rand Visa Cash Passport is the perfect addition to any starting
line up. Visitors are only permitted to carry up to R5,000 cash in or out of
South Africa, which equates to approximately GBP467 . With the Visa Cash
Passport, travellers can preload up to R85,000, approximately GBP7,900,
and then reload online, commission free or over the phone or in branch.As the only major prepaid currency card provider to offer a South
African Rand Visa card, Travelex advises fans that it’s the winning
solution to tackle the currency restriction in place. Visa Cash Passport users not only lock in their exchange rate upfront,
but also benefit from free ATM withdrawals and no charges on purchase
transactions.
SmartCard Marketing Systems has released its 2010 business Outlook to
offer updates on its growing business segments and products. They include:
The Green Dot Financial Network that enables cardholders to add cash onto
their VelocityMoney cards at tens of thousands of retail locations
nationwide including Rite Aid, Walgreens, CVS/pharmacy, RadioShack and
WalMart; The VelocityMoney Financial Services Portal; the addition of the
VelocityMoney consumer financial portal to the VelocityMerchant
commercial financial management portal; globally-branded Open-Loop Prepaid Debit Cards, the
VelocityMoney Prepaid Debit and Gift Card Program in the US; distribution rights to a prepaid Debit MasterCard
in Canada; the HomeATM PIN terminal free Internet-based
payment platform, VelocityMoney.com; merchant processing and online bill pay processing;
money transfer service; SWIFT payment processing and email money transfer.
RBS WorldPay has been selected as a preferred provider of merchant
accounts for buyers of e-payment solution provider VeriFone’s PAYware Mobile card payment solution
for the iPhone. WorldPay will market PAYware Mobile through its
multiple channels, including its nationwide direct and ISO sales forces
and via the web. The PAYware Mobile card encryption sleeve incorporates VeriFone’s
end-to-end encryption technology, which encrypts each transaction from
the time of card swipe until it reaches RBS WorldPay, and ensures secure
payment processing. Users also gain access to the PAYware Connect
gateway, a fully customizable and reliable gateway service that’s ideal
for small businesses.
MICROS Systems information technology solutions for the hospitality and retail industries has formed an alliance with Trustwave to now offer clients the managed Unified Threat Management (UTM) service and “TrustKeeper 3.0.” This will help MICROS clients achieve and maintain compliance with the PCI DSS in conjunction with all of MICROS’s PA-DSS validated products. MICROS offers a complete portfolio of 19 different PA-DSS validated products and client tokenization for cardholder data. The managed Unified Threat Management (UTM) service enhances the security offered by tokenization. Trustwave’s UTM core technology includes a firewall to regulate traffic that enters and exits the network; gateway anti-virus to stop viruses before they enter a network; Virtual Private Network (VPN) support to ensure confidentiality and security of communication between the merchant and remote employees; and in-line Intrusion Prevention System (IPS) which supplements the firewall to stop attacks at the application layer before it can penetrate network operations. The “TrustKeeper 3.0” Web portal which helps streamline compliance validation for all MICROS clients.
MoneyGram International has expanded its money transfer services as Sacombank and Eximbank join the company’s agent network, growing the countrywide network by 30%.
Sacombank is one of Vietnam’s largest providers of remittance services with 253 convenient countrywide locations. Eximbank is a leading provider of financial services and an experienced remittance provider with 141 locations primarily in the areas around Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi.
Approximately $7 billion in remittances arrive in Vietnam each year, primarily from the United States and Canada, according to World Bank estimates.
TX-based mobile technology provider C$ cMoney has signed a definitive
merger agreement with Bonfire Productions. The combined companies will
operate under the C$ cMoney name with the corporate headquarters in Houston.
C$ cMoney has developed a new and innovative way to send money and pay
for goods and services using a cell phone. Furthermore, using the C$
cMoney application will eliminate identity and credit card theft. When
it is released later this spring, the C$ cMoney mobile application will
enable consumers to download and use it with virtually any mobile device.
In March of this year, C$ cMoney, Inc. received $15 million in funding
from Kodiak Capital Group, LLC of New York City.