With the total outstanding revolving US consumer credit up a staggering 7.5% in June from last year to an adjusted $857B, total nonfarm payroll employment increased by 162,000 in July as the unemployment rate edged down to 7.4%. The second highest outstanding total of the year, June revolving credit outstanding is still not as high…
Allied Payment Network, a provider of online and mobile bill payment services to the financial industry, announced New Castle Bank launch Allied’s Picture Pay mobile bill pay solution, enabling its customers to pay any bill by taking a picture of the bill with their mobile device. In an effort to simplify the bill pay process, Ameriana Bank integrated Picture Pay into its existing mobile banking app, increasing the level of convenience for accountholders with a solution that is also more cost-effective for the bank. Once a customer takes a picture of the bill with their smartphone, they simply enter the amount and payment date, and the bill is paid. Picture Pay’s technology reads the data from the customer’s bill, and then its built-in analytics confirm the biller and execute the payment process. Picture Pay was developed in conjunction with Malauzai Software Inc., a provider of mobile banking SmartApps for community financial institutions.
Bluepoint Solutions partnered Financial Services (FSI) to offer DocX print and electronic statement fulfillment to credit unions nationwide. The partnership will allow credit unions to increase adoption of cost efficient e-statements through targeted promotions and customized, multi-channel member delivery. DocX creates and distributes personalized financial statements by combining a member’s account information with variable advertising and promotional content that is tailored to each member’s spending habits and preferences. Statements are designed specifically to each credit union’s branding and are delivered directly to the member through any combination of print mail, email and mobile channels. DocX streamlines statements from various types of accounts including credit card, checking and savings accounts, and auto and home loans into a single, cost-effective statement for mail or electronic delivery.
For the seventh year in a row, consumers have rated American Express highest in customer satisfaction among U.S. credit card companies, according to the annual nationwide study by J.D. Power. The study places American Express highest in overall satisfaction among 11 of the largest card issuers in the U.S. American Express remains the only credit card to receive the study’s top ranking since it was first conducted in 2007. The J.D. Power 2013 Credit Card Satisfaction StudySM looks at six broad categories to determine overall satisfaction: Customer Interaction, Billing and Payment Process, Credit Card Terms, Rewards Programs, Benefits and Services, and Problem Resolution. Over the past year, American Express has worked to improve the overall customer experience by introducing a host of new digital enhancements and updated product offerings, better connecting Card Members with American Express, merchants and each other. American Express ranked highest in Benefits and Services, Rewards Programs, and the Billing and Payments categories.
CoinTap is the creation of Bitcoin Ventures, Inc., a local virtual currency software development company that offers smart solutions for Bitcoin e-commerce. The product is a gift card which streamlines an otherwise tricky and time-consuming process of trading your money on a market for Bitcoins. A $50 gift card is redeemable for 50 dollars in credit, which can then be used to purchase Bitcoins at a competitive rate through the company’s website. While the Government of Canada views Bitcoins as a tradable commodity, but not a currency, Germany recently ruled that the Bitcoin is “private money” and therefore taxable, just like regular money.
ZTE Corporation, a publicly-listed global provider of telecommunications equipment, network solutions and mobile devices, has selected Micropross testers for the internal pre-certification of their NFC enabled smart devices. This choice was driven by several factors. One of them, is the fact that Micropross test solutions are deployed at numerous validation laboratories in the world, which means that ZTE will be able to debug their prototypes in their own laboratories, and be very confident they will be successful when they will take the official validation session at an EMVCo laborarory. Then, Micropross EMVCo L1 analog test bench is the only one validated by EMVCo, which adds another level of confidence to the solution. And finally, only Micropross is able to propose a complete EMVCo test solution in a compact, all-in-one box such as the Contactless Test Station.
Global technology company NCR Corporation (NCR) has won a new automated teller machine (ATM) order of more than 500 units from ATMU (China) Technology Co. Ltd (“ATMU”), the largest ATM cooperation operator and service provider in China. The order includes NCR SelfServTM ATMs with cash dispense, deposit and cash recycling functions, which will help ATMU’s bank customers, especially small-to-medium sized banks, to deliver a better customer experience. Since 2008, NCR has won volume ATM orders from ATMU totaling more than 9,200 units. ATMU owns and operates its ATM network through a profit-sharing model with cooperated banks. This cooperation model allows banks, especially small-to-medium sized banks in China, to avoid making separate investments in dedicated ATM fleets.
PayPal Here, the highly anticipated Chip and PIN solution for small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs), is now available to all businesses in the UK. The chip and PIN reader is aimed specifically at businesses that have traditionally relied on cash or checks. It is a game changer for SMBs, enabling businesses an affordable, easy to use and secure way to accept credit and debit cards or PayPal Check in, meaning businesses don’t have to turn away customers who don’t have enough cash on them or want to pay by card. The PayPal Here app can be downloaded from iTunes (iOS) and Google Play (Android) and then you order the PayPal Heretm Chip and PIN card reader through the app.
MoneyGram signed an agreement with Southeast Bank Limited (SEBL), a Bangladesh-based private commercial bank, and is now offering money transfer services at the bank’s branches across the country. The agreement increases MoneyGram’s presence in Bangladesh, adds it to its growing agent network, and makes the company’s services easier for customers to access. The addition of SEBL to MoneyGram’s agent network in Bangladesh creates an easy-to-access footprint of locations with MoneyGram services.