Industry

Paper Checks are Dead. Cash is Dying. Who Still Uses Them?

Washington Post

"In a few years, comically oversized foam-board novelty checks will be the last remaining evidence of a 20th-century icon, as the paper check goes the way of the landline phone and the floppy disk... See where checks are still predominantly being used"

Industry

International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the Financial Stability Board (FSB) Synthesis Paper: Policies for Crypto-Assets

Financial Stability Board

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the Financial Stability Board (FSB) have advanced policy and regulatory recommendations to identify and respond to macroeconomic and financial stability risks associated with crypto-assets.

Industry

As Payments on Federal Student Loans Resume, Federal Student loan Borrowers May be Eligible for Cancellation or Lower Payments

Consumer Financial Protection Bureau

"In October, millions of federal student loan borrowers will have a payment due on their loans for the first time since March 2020. Many borrowers may be able to reduce their payments or even get their loans cancelled, and they should explore their options before making payments."

Industry

Hyundai Introduces In-Vehicle Payment Service, Hyundai Pay, on All-New 2024 Kona

prnewswire

"Hyundai Motor America is bringing in-vehicle payments to customers with the introduction of Hyundai Payi. The Hyundai Pay system allows customers to find and pay for things with their vehicle's touchscreen using securely stored credit card information."

Industry

Phone, Internet Providers Disallowing Payments by Credit Cards [CBS News Video]

CBS News

"Major phone and internet companies are pushing away from credit card payments, leading to higher monthly bills for some customers. Ted Rossman, senior industry analyst at Bankrate, joined CBS News to discuss why companies don't want you to pay by credit card."

Companies Industry Regulation

Credit Card Companies Urged by Senators to Cancel Plan to Raise Swipe Fees

Bloomberg

"Senators are urging credit card giants Visa Inc. and Mastercard Inc. to cancel plans to raise their swipe fees charged to retailers and used reports on the plans to champion their bill to force competition in the industry."

Tags: Mastercard Visa

Industry

Self Checkout Could Be Making Americans Lonelier

Business Insider

"Americans are lonelier than ever, and self checkout could be part of the problem. Retailers are increasingly relying on self-checkout kiosks. The technology may save on labor, but it's also cutting down on what social scientists call "weak ties," or casual relationships like those between customers and cashiers, the Los Angeles Times reported on Monday."

Companies Industry

Why Verizon, AT&T and T-Mobile Want to Access Your Bank Account [WSJ]

WSJ

"Wireless carriers want to give you a monthly discount. You just have to pay them with your bank account. Some already offered $5 or $10 monthly discounts for setting up automatic payments. Over the past few months, these companies have shifted their offers to require customers to link a debit card or bank account—specifically not a credit card—to get the discount." [Subscription Required]

Industry

ATM Fees Hit High of $4.73

www.atmmarketplace.com

"The average fee for out-of-network ATMs reached an all time high this year of $4.73, surpassing the previous high of $4.72, according to a report by Bankrate."

Industry

SoftPOS Offers Many Advantages, But a Few Drawbacks, Too

Digital Transactions

"The recently developed ability to accept card payments on an ordinary smart phone, with no additional hardware, has electrified the payments industry. But the technology, known as SoftPOS, comes with complications that could slow progress, a panel of experts warned Thursday."

Industry

BNPL’s Rapid Ascent Evokes Clashing Opinions on the Ethics of Short-Term POS Credit

Digital Transactions

"The buy now, pay later craze, which took flight during the Covid pandemic, has turned into a $70-billion-plus segment of the payments industry. But that doesn’t mean it hasn’t stirred controversy among acquiring-industry executives, some of whom manage versions of the point-of-sale credit product."

Industry

World Pay: Revolutionizing P2P Payments Through Cryptographic Proof

GlobeNewswire News Room

"The global financial system has undergone multiple changes throughout its lifetime. First, with the introduction of the gold standard, then with advancements in banking communications, digitized international trade and investment, and remittances....World Pay (WPAY) is the newest creation that seeks to build on the P2P and blockchain revolution to make finance more direct and transparent.

Industry

Unleashing the Power of Liveness Detection: A Game-Changer in the Battle Against Deepfakes

Biometric Update

"The generative AI revolution is here. With its ability to augment human intelligence and effort in a wide variety of fields including healthcare, robotics and creative endeavors, it is no wonder that the global market for generative AI is predicted to be $110 billion by 2030. However, this rapidly advancing technology also starts to seriously question whether the image, audio or video that you just experienced is real or an AI-generated deepfake."

Industry

ISO 20022 Coins

Techopedia

"What are ISO 20022 Coins? An ISO 20022 coin is a digital currency that adheres to the international standard ISO 20022 for electronic data interchange between financial institutions."

Companies Industry

PULSE® Extends Debit Fraud Detection Agreement with FICO®

Businesswire

"PULSE, a Discover® Financial Services company and operator of the PULSE debit network, has agreed to an extension of its partnership with global analytics software provider FICO. PULSE and FICO collaborate to deliver market-leading fraud-detection technology that reduces losses and risk exposure for financial institutions, merchants and consumers worldwide."

Tags: Discover

Industry

EMVCo Sets MFA Security Guidelines with Encouragement and Cautions for Biometrics Use

Biometric Update

"Biometrics can help make multi-factor authentication used in payments resistant to attacks, but can also do the opposite if the wrong technology or architecture is chosen, according to a new paper from EMVCo."

Industry

US Fed Clarifies Process for Banks to Transact in Stablecoins

Reuters

"State banks that are a member of the U.S. Federal Reserve system should obtain a written supervisory nonobjection from the Fed before issuing, holding or transacting in dollar tokens used to facilitate payments, such as stablecoins, the central bank said in a new supervisory letter Tuesday."

Industry

Independent ATM Operators Receive Approval to Move Ahead With Antitrust Case Against Visa, Mastercard

ATM Marketplace

"The D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals approved a class action lawsuit made by independent ATM operators against Visa and Mastercard for allegedly violating antitrust laws. MoginRubin LLP will represent the ATM operators in court, according to a press release."

Industry

MIT Digital Currency Initiative Introduces At-Scale, Programmable CBDC Platform

Cointelegraph

"The Massachusetts Institute of Technology Digital Currency Initiative has introduced the experimental PArSEC platform. PArSEC — short for "parallelized architecture for scalably executing smart contracts" — is open source and developed with central bank digital currency (CBDC) in mind."

Industry

Digital Dollar Project Launches Retail CBDC Pilot with Western Union Focused on Cross-Border Payments

prnewswire

"The Digital Dollar Project today announced the completion of a pilot study conducted in collaboration with The Western Union Company, BDO Unibank, Inc. in the Philippines, and support from Accenture. This collaboration represents the Digital Dollar Project's latest private sector efforts in support of the exploration and experimentation of a central bank digital currency (CBDC) in the United States."

Industry

What Is a CBDC and Why Do Central Banks Want Them?

Washington Post

"Money is undergoing its biggest reinvention in centuries. With many consumers abandoning physical cash and cryptocurrencies evolving fast, central banks are on the move to ensure they don’t fall behind on innovation. The goal is a digital form of legal tender that can compete with private-sector alternatives by being safer and cheaper to use."

Industry

As Social Security Official Warns of A.I. Fraud Risks, One Expert Says Criminal Activity is ‘Here Right Now’

CNBC

"While scrolling social media, you may find a video of President Joe Biden urging you to sign up for extra Social Security benefits for which you are eligible. While the hypothetical video may seem real, the promise of extra benefits is not."

Industry

PSD3: Four Real Problems Addressed, One Big Opportunity Missed

Electronic Payments International

"PSD3 has long been touted as all encapsulating replacement to PSD2. Galit Shani Michel discusses the first draft proposal of the regulation and asks if it covers all that it should"

Industry

CUNA AND NAFCU Announce Intent to Merge to Form “America's Credit Unions”

CUNA

"The Credit Union National Association (CUNA) and the National Association of Federally-Insured Credit Unions (NAFCU), the nation’s two leading credit union associations, officially announced their intent to merge and form a new organization, America’s Credit Unions."

Industry

Is Palm Payments The Innovation Consumers And Retailers Have Been Looking For?

TechFinancials

"Palm payments are fast gaining traction with retailers and payment solution providers globally. It is no secret that retail innovation gains mainstream uptake by consumers when there is value and convenience."

Industry

Is the Digital Dollar Dead?

MIT Technology Review

"Prominent politicians want to make sure a central bank digital currency never happens in the US—just as we’ve learned the basics of how one might work."

Industry

Embedded Finance, Bank-Fintech Partnerships Drive Agenda at Money 20/20 Europe

SP Global

"The mood at Money 20/20 Europe was buoyant despite a challenging first half of 2023 for the European fintech industry. The halls were packed, and embedded finance companies jostled for space."

Industry

Embedded Finance: Another Buzz Phrase or a Real Opportunity for the FinTech Sector?

Fintech News

"The FinTech industry is picking up speed, and is changing our understanding about financial services and their uses in many fields. One of the reasons for this change is embedded finance."

Industry

Verde Payments Rolls Out Powerful Merchant Protection Tools

Newswire

"Verde Payments is announcing a suite of tools to aid merchants with chargeback problems. This ala carte service is now available through the FraudDeflect Product Suite. Of particular note is the new Visa Compelling Evidence 3.0 service tool that can erase chargebacks and stop chargebacks for existing subscription customers."

Industry

Chargeback Surge in UK Mirrors US Trend, Intensifying Merchant Challenges

PR Newswire

"Justt, the chargeback mitigation pioneer, has unveiled a new study pinpointing a worrying trend in consumer chargeback behaviors impacting merchants in the United Kingdom and the United States. The research shows that over 75% of respondents in both countries lodged at least one credit card payment dispute in the period from May 2022 to May 2023."