The Discover U.S. Spending Monitor fell 1.4 points to 91.0 in July, in response to a decline in confidence in the economy from consumers- especially those making less than $40,000. Consumers also grew more pessimistic toward their personal finances last month, which correlated with a decline in discretionary spending intentions. Respondents indicating the economy is…
Mako Networks and AirTight Networks announced a reciprocal agreement to bundle Mako’s network management system and AirTight’s Wi-Fi technology from the PCI SSC North American Community Meeting. The joint solution offers sophisticated yet easy-to-use cloud management ideal for distributed enterprises, coupled with powerful Wi-Fi retail analytics and end-to-end PCI DSS compliance. A Mako network appliance connects the site to the Internet using a broadband connection. As the conduit for all Internet traffic, the Mako System is able to collect information about network usage at the site, which is populated into a Central Management System (CMS) that can be accessed by administrators from a simple web interface, with detailed reporting on the network activity across their distributed enterprise locations. Retailers can integrate social media channels with AirTight’s customisable guest Wi-Fi portals to engage with in-store customers, encourage them to opt into marketing programs and reach out to them via geo-marketing campaigns, such as coupons or special offers. Built-in Wi-Fi analytics deliver insights into customer behavior and trends.
MoneyGram announced five year renewal of its agreement with Susquehanna Bancshares, a Pennsylvania-based commercial bank, to provide official check services through its PrimeLink Official Check program. MoneyGram’s PrimeLink Official Check outsourcing program provides banks with cost efficiencies through management of its clients’ official checks, including daily balancing and reconciliation, exception handling, inventory management, and real-time updates on official check transactions. MoneyGram provides a high level of service and responsiveness to bank personnel in support of their programs and helps prevent fraud losses by identifying fraudulent official checks.
PowerPay is launching “10 Days of Giving” (www.10daysofgiving.com) – a celebration that reflects the company’s corporate culture and commitment to giving, sustainability and community. During the first 10 days of October, PowerPay employees are volunteering time during their workdays and making donations of food and clothing to a variety of local nonprofits. A different activity is scheduled each day from Oct. 1 through Oct. 10. Beneficiaries include Goodwill, the American Red Cross, Portland Public Library, Preble Street, the Good Shepherd Food Bank, Portland Trails and Big Brothers Big Sisters of Greater Portland. PowerPay’s culture has roots in connecting with and giving back to the community. Sustainability and philanthropic practices are a large part of daily operations. The company also has an active Giving Committee, an independent task force of employees whose activities support social responsibility.
Fico partnered Big Data startup ERN, which will embed FICO’s marketing solutions within its real-time Big Data analytics platform Looop, giving marketers in financial services and retail the ability to execute highly personalized merchant-funded marketing strategies based on precise analysis of each consumer’s preferences and needs. The partnership is initially focused on the financial services market in the UK, Europe and Asia. Looop is a scalable, reliable and secure Big Data analytics platform that enables banks, acquirers and merchants to perform deep analysis of customer behavior on a micro and macro scale. The actionable insights that result can be used to create compelling relevant and timely offers that can be sent to customers through a mobile app in real-time. Looop is fully PCI and ISO 27001 compliant.
Digital Insight technology solutions to financial institutions announced John O’Malley CEO, an experienced financial services and technology veteran who brings over 30 years of knowledge. O’Malley joins Digital Insight with prior experience as the CEO of Panini, a provider of payment technology. Prior to that he was the CEO of Memento, which was acquired by FIS, and President and CEO of Harland Financial Solutions where he led its growth from a small subsidiary to one of the leading providers of financial technology in North America. He has also held senior positions with Fiserv, Hogan Systems (now part of Computer Sciences Corp) and the J.H. Harland Company (now part of MacAndrews and Forbes). O’Malley also brings strong experience and innovation to both traditional and alternative payment solutions. He has extensive knowledge in global finance, enterprise sales and fulfillment solutions, enterprise big data, fraud and risk management.
Intershop and PayPal online payments partnered on e-commerce solutions. Intershop offers retailers a safe, reliable and simple to use payment platform. In turn, PayPal will offer clients Intershop’s state-or-the-art e-commerce platform, proven technology from two decades of experience across various industry verticals. The partnership will address the needs of Brazilian companies that seek a transition to a world-class e-commerce platform, capable of integrating with existing legacy IT infrastructure, and bringing advanced payments, store management, mobile and cloud solutions.
ElectraCard Services processing solutions for electronic payment systems announced that Agriculture Promotion (AP) Bank, Laos has gone live on ECS’ electra payments suite. AP Bank, the largest public sector bank in Laos is ECS’s second customer in Laos and further consolidates ECS leadership position in South -East Asia. The electra platform will power AP Bank’s endeavour to offer electronic banking services to its existing customers. ECS’ electraSWITCH and electraDEBIT solution will facilitate AP Bank to offer their customers access to a wide range of delivery channels including ATMs, POS, internet, mobile and IVR. The bank also plans to leverage the electra suite to roll out innovative and effective ways to deliver value to its account cardholders. ECS’ system will be connected with ATM pool network in Laos, enabling AP Bank customers to carry out transactions across the network’s ATMs in Laos.