PayForward has launched the Visa Link Card – the first card of its kind allowing users to earn instant cash from PayForward merchant partners while still receiving rewards from their current providers. This new feature aims to strengthen PayForward’s convenience and effectiveness by allowing members to use assets already in their wallets.
The Barclays Partner Finance arm of Barclaycard launched ‘bFlex’, a flexible online finance product allowing consumers to take out instant finance for internet purchases. Whilst consumers have long been able to take out credit at the point of sale when shopping on the high street, they have been more restricted when shopping online. With traditional credit often tied into pre-packaged solutions or terms set by the retailer, bFlex is controlled by the consumer, with instant access at the online point of sale. bFlex can be fully integrated into a retailer’s existing online ordering system and will allow customers to select a finance option designed around their needs and use it to instantly pay for their goods.
Gemalto launched its NFC services management, powered by its Allynis Trusted Services Manager (TSM) solution and hosted in Gemalto’s local TSM data center. This brings NFC to Singapore consumers lines up a consortium of local partners including mobile operators, banks and service providers. This is the first time that the mobile operators and a range of other service providers join forces to launch nation-wide NFC services to the general public using a unified, comprehensive TSM solution. With the upcoming commercial rollout, consumers will have the freedom to tap and pay using their NFC-enabled mobile devices at over 20,000 retail points such as convenience stores, fast food outlets, retailers and even a fleet of taxis.
TSYS announced the addition of Dennis Jones joins as Group Executive of Business Operations, TSYS International, along with Rick Machold as Group Executive, Assistant General Auditor, TSYS. Jones will oversee the operations teams responsible for account migration, data center and facilities, customer care and production support for TSYS’ international segment. He has held senior executive positions at NatWest and subsequently RBS, including a two-year assignment as Chief Executive Officer at RBS National Bank in the U.S. Meanwhile, Machold will be responsible for providing independent reviews and evaluations of the company’s operations, information systems, controls, major business processes and reporting functions in order to provide recommendations to management, external auditors and the audit committee. He has served as the head of enterprise risk for Invesco LTD. where he designed, implemented and managed the global enterprise risk management process.
Gemalto was selected by IDA as the trusted third party to deploy mobile NFC contactless services across Singapore. With this, it will develop and operate its Trusted Services Manager (TSM) solution to securely deploy and manage mobile NFC services such as payment, ticketing, loyalty and other wireless services like the smart poster which allows consumers to interact with advertisements. With Singapore’s three mobile operators all connected to this interoperable NFC infrastructure, banks, payment and service providers will be able to deploy innovative mobile NFC services to all mobile subscribers. This open yet secure platform will also encourage widespread participation by businesses and service providers from wide-ranging industries to join the ecosystem to offer more consumer services, including mobile coupons, mobile tickets and product information.
Telemundo and its mun2 television channel for young bicultural Hispanics in the U.S. have teamed with Western Union to offer Hispanic consumers in the U.S. two co-branded Western Union, Telemundo and mun2 general purpose reloadable MasterCard prepaid cards. Supported with a national integrated campaign to include television, digital, and direct to consumer marketing efforts, the agreement paves the way for these brands to leverage their presence to better serve Hispanic consumers, the fastest growing consumer segment in the U.S. The co-branded MasterCard prepaid cards will offer consumers flexible and convenient options for loading funds, including Western Union Money Transfer ® transactions. Consumers will be able to reload money in-person at more than 46,000 participating Western Union Agent locations in the U.S., through direct deposit of employer or government benefits, or through their bank account online. Cardholders have the ability to use the cards anywhere Debit MasterCard ® is accepted, including online and at ATMs.
On Track Innovations contactless microprocessor-based smart card solutions for payments has elected Mr. David P. Stone and Mr. Mark Green as members of its board of directors. With this, the board is comprised of nine members. Stone retired as a senior partner in the New York-based international law firm of Weil, Gotshal & Manges LLP (“WGM”) at the end of 2005. For approximately 35 years prior to his retirement, Mr. Stone was engaged in the practice of law, specializing in corporate, securities and mergers and acquisitions law. At WGM, he founded and led the firm’s Israel Practice Group which, during his tenure, represented the issuers, underwriters or selling shareholders in connection with more than 90 public offerings of equity or debt securities by Israeli companies in the United States. Green is head of Technology and International Banking at Merriman Curhan Ford, a New York-based investment bank. Mr. Green previously headed C.E. Unterberg, Towbin’s (and later Collins Stewart’s) banking efforts in Israel, where he advised technology companies on cross-border public and private financings and mergers & acquisitions.
Standard Chartered Bank has launched its “MoneyHome” Card
remittance program to facilitate money transfers to Indonesia via the
banks’ retail partners. When the remittance has been sent, the
recipient will likewise be allowed to receive funds at a participating
retailer locations. So far, 20 retailers have been selected by the
bank as points of remittance, with others currently being considered
as a means of avoiding the need to actually have to go to a bank. Even
greater expansion is being considered over the next 6 months to 1
year period. For initial account activation, the consumer need only present
identification at the registration booth and will be issued a “MoneyHome
Card” free of charge, which is being issued in response to recent
statistics showing US$1 billion in annual transfers from Malaysia to
Indonesia.
Dallas-based TNB now owns 120 credit union card portfolios with the addition of five more credit unions that opted to sell their credit card portfolios to TNB Card Services. The new deals added more than 5,500 card account and nearly $7 million in outstanding balances to TNB’s portfolio. TNB now owns the programs of Potelco United CU in Idaho; BRECO FCU in Louisiana; Northern Tier FCU in North Dakota; KEMBA Louisville CU in Kentucky; and Salmon Falls Community CU in New Hampshire. TNB serves more than 475 financial institutions and manages more than 1.6 million cards.
VISA USA has released “Financial Football,” a free cell phone game developed with the NFL and PLAYERS INC to help teens learn how to manage money wisely. “Financial Football” puts students’ fiscal knowledge to the test by combining the structure and rules of the NFL with financial education questions of varying difficulty. To score points, a player needs to answer various money management questions correctly. Wrong answers and penalties can cost a player yardage. “Financial Football” is part of “Practical Money Skills for Life”, a comprehensive financial literacy program that teaches young adults personal finance skills. The free, computer-based version of “Financial Football” has already been downloaded and played over 100,000 times.
Wal-Mart Stores has introduced a personalized gift card for the holiday season. There is an $0.88 fee for the personalization service. The process is self-service so customers can decide exactly how they want their gift card to appear. Customers can also go online to create personalized gift cards. They can upload photos and place orders at Walmart.com, and then pick up gift cards one hour later at a local Wal-Mart One Hour Photo Center location. The new gift card is available nationwide in all One Hour Digital Photo Centers at Wal-Mart stores, Neighborhood Markets, SAM’S CLUB locations and Walmart.com.
The Anti-Phishing Working Group’s August 2005 phishing report shows that for the second month in a row, the number of phishing reports received of new campaigns declined – while at the same time, the number of new phishing sites reached an all-time high of 5,259, a substantial increase over the 4,564 reported in July. The August report shows indications that defenses organized by victimized brandholders may be working to the extent that phishers are forced to employ greater resources to mount the same number of attacks. The Anti-Phishing Working Group (APWG) was formed in 2003 to fight identity theft and email spoofing on the Internet with around 2,000 members from more than 1300 financial services firms, ISPs, security vendors, law enforcement agencies, law courts, regulatory agencies and consumer groups from around the world.