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December 13, 2021

On the web

Retailers Declare War on Visa and Mastercard Over Transaction Fees

The Telegraph

“Retailers have ramped up a battle against Visa and Mastercard with more than a dozen major brands logging fresh legal claims over card payment fees. The High Court writs, which count Levi, Superdry and AllSaints as claimants, will pile pressure on the two credit card giants following Amazon’s attack on Visa’s high transaction fees last month. The fashion chains, advised by lawyers at Stephenson Harwood, are seeking compensation for historic charging fees in breach of competition laws.”

December 1, 2021

On the web

Credit-Card Applications Hit Pandemic High

Wall Street Journal

“Americans are applying for credit cards at a rate not seen since before the pandemic. Close to 27% of U.S. consumers said in October that they had applied for a credit card in the past 12 months, according to the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. That is the highest level since 2019 and well above the record low of 16% recorded a year ago.”

November 16, 2021

On the wires

Voyager Digital Announces the Voyager Debit Mastercard®

Voyager Digital Ltd. (“Voyager” or the “Company”) (TSX: VOYG) (OTCQX: VYGVF ) (FRA: UCD2), one of the fastest-growing, publicly traded cryptocurrency platforms in the United States, today announced the launch of the Voyager Debit Mastercard, the first crypto-based debit card that pays up to 9% annual rewards to Voyager customers, as well as additional rewards for Voyager Loyalty Program members.”

October 29, 2021

On the wires

October 19, 2021

On the wires

Cryptocurrency Innovators Invest in New Card Solutions, With Marqeta’s Modern Card Issuing Platform Powering Growth of New Category

Marqeta (NASDAQ: MQ), the global modern card issuing platform, announced today that it is powering cryptocurrency spending and rewards products for Coinbase, Fold, Shakepay and Bakkt, with the company seeing rising interest in new card products in this rapidly evolving category. Use of cryptocurrencies has grown considerably in the United States, with data from the Gemini Exchange estimating that 14% of the US currently owns some form of crypto. As a category leader in modern card issuing, Marqeta has opened up new applications of its platform, to allow cryptocurrency to be spent at the point of sale, or allow consumers to earn rewards in cryptocurrency from debit and credit card spending.”

X1 Card, the Smartest Credit Card Ever Made, Launches for a New Generation of Cardholders

X1 Card , the smartest credit card ever made, is now officially available in the U.S. X1’s debut was met with excitement and anticipation , attracting the fastest growing fintech waitlist of all time with more than 350,000 people. Now, after being in a private beta for the last six months, the X1 Card is officially rolling out to the public, starting with its waitlist. X1 Card reimagines the credit card from the ground up. It harnesses the power of technology to offer smart credit limits, an unparalleled rewards program, and automated features that will transform the way you shop and spend.”

October 18, 2021

On the web

Supply-Chain Crisis Is Bad for iPhones, Great for Gift Cards

Bloomberg

“Americans love gift cards. For younger generations, they’ve become their favorite gift. Which is good, because they’re about to get lots of them. In an economy hamstrung by all types of global supply-chain snarls, mounting product shortages — even Apple is reportedly slashing production — are making giving gift cards a fail-safe way to ensure there are presents under the Christmas tree. Shoppers plan to boost spending on them by 27% this holiday season to about $270 per person, according to a survey by payment service Blackhawk Network. Those gains will push cards to about 40% of their total gift purchases.”

October 6, 2021

On the wires

Chase and Hyatt Launch First World of Hyatt Business Credit Card

“Today, Chase Card Services (NYSE: JPM) and Hyatt Hotels Corporation (NYSE: H) announced the launch of the new World of Hyatt Business Credit Card , designed to reward small business owners and Hyatt customers for how they do business. This first business credit card offered by Hyatt features an adaptive rewards accelerator that allows business cardmembers to earn double World of Hyatt points per quarter on categories they spend the most, helping them quickly achieve free nights, elite status, room and suite upgrades and other highly coveted rewards.”

September 16, 2021

On the wires

J.P. Morgan Supports Alipay to Provide Card Payment Services for Alibaba.com in the U.S.

“Today, J.P. Morgan (NYSE: JPM) announced it went live with credit card payments processing for Alibaba.com, the B2B business unit of Alibaba Group (NYSE: BABA). Working together with Alipay, a leading digital life services platform operated by Ant Group, J.P. Morgan Merchant Services, the #1 payments processing provider in the U.S. according to Nilson, now powers payments made by U.S. credit cards on Alibaba.com.”

September 10, 2021

On the wires

Expensify Announces New Expensify Card Perk: Up to 2% Cash Back for All Cardholders

“Expensify, the most widely used preaccounting software in the world, announced today the addition of the highly anticipated cash back perk for the Expensify Card. Companies can now automatically earn up to 2% cash back on all purchases under the following conditions: For every month you spend over $25K combined across all cards, earn unlimited 1% cash back. For every month you spend over $250K combined across all cards, earn unlimited 2% cash back.”

August 23, 2021

On the web

Paying With a Credit Card? That’s Going to Cost You.

Wall Street Journal

“It is getting more expensive to pay for things with a credit card. More small businesses—and even some larger ones—are charging shoppers a fee for credit-card purchases or offering them discounts when they pay with debit cards, cash or checks. The moves are meant to offset the various fees businesses pay on credit-card transactions, costs that have grown alongside generous cash-back and travel rewards. Data on cash discounting is hard to come by, and less than 5% of 8 million card-accepting small businesses in the U.S. charge fees for credit-card payments, according to estimates from payments consultancy the Strawhecker Group. But that share has risen steadily in recent years. Five years ago, an estimated 2% or less of businesses charged fees on credit-card purchases.”

August 20, 2021

On the web

Gas Stations Aren’t Pumped About Mastercard’s Magstripe Phaseout

American Banker

“The liability shift enabled merchants to decide for themselves whether the upgrade to EMV was worth it. EMV, known in other countries as chip-and-PIN, encrypts card data so that it becomes harder for scammers to compromise the point of sale or create cloned cards. The upgrade could be pricey — especially for gas stations, which may have to rip pumps out of the asphalt to make the necessary changes — and some merchants decided that they would rather accept the fraud liability shift than pay for new hardware. Those merchants could still accept magstripe card payments. But under Mastercard’s new timeline, “if you haven’t migrated to EMV compliance under this new announcement, you won’t be able to accept cards,” Toth said.”

August 16, 2021

On the wires

Walgreens Launches Industry-First MyWalgreens Credit Card Program – The Credit Card That Pays Well to Stay Well ®

“Walgreens (Nasdaq: WBA) today introduced the new myWalgreens Credit Card program, featuring two industry-first retail health and wellness credit cards, issued by Synchrony Bank (NYSE: SYF).  The myWalgreens Mastercard and the myWalgreens card are the first ever of their kind to reward more personalized wellbeing choices and offer industry-leading rewards at more than 9,000 Walgreens locations, Walgreens.com, Walgreens-owned Duane Reade locations, via the Walgreens mobile app, and wherever Mastercard is accepted.”

August 12, 2021

On the wires

Swiping Left on Magnetic Stripes

“The shift away from the magnetic stripe points to both consumers changing habits for payments and the development of newer technologies. Today’s chip cards are powered by microprocessors that are much more capable and secure, and many are also embedded with tiny antennae that enable contactless transactions. Biometric cards , which combine fingerprints with chips to verify a cardholder’s identity, offer another layer of security. Based on the decline in payments powered by magnetic stripes after chip-based payments took hold, newly-issued Mastercard credit and debit cards will not be required to have a stripe starting in 2024 in most markets. By 2033, no Mastercard credit and debit cards will have magnetic stripes, which leaves a long runway for the remaining partners who still rely on the technology to phase in chip card processing.”

August 11, 2021

On the wires

Chase Reveals New Benefits Coming to Sapphire Preferred and Reserve Credit Cards

“Today, Chase announces new benefits that will be added to the Sapphire Preferred and Reserve credit cards. All of the benefits will be automatically available to existing and new cardmembers starting August 16, with no changes to the current annual fees…The new benefits will build on the value that both Sapphire Preferred and Reserve already offer and incorporate more ways to earn and redeem to meet cardmembers where they are spending today.”

August 10, 2021

On the web

Your Guide to the New Credit Card Wars

Bloomberg

“U.S. consumer borrowing recently jumped by the most on record . Revolving credit, which includes credit cards, rose $9.2 billion. Mastercard says card use in the U.S. jumped 36% . Overseas spending rose 47% in Visa’s fiscal third quarter. Lending standards for cards have been loosening. And after months of uncertainty, credit card companies are now waging a war for new customers, offering some high-flying perks…Meanwhile, cash-back is the newly coronated king. Wells Fargo, Citi and Bank of America have all launched new cards in that category this summer. That’s a reversal of a yearslong trend toward offering travel perks and points. Given the pandemic, many customers simply want cash as a reward and banks are responding.”

August 9, 2021

On the wires

Alchemy Pay to Launch Virtual Crypto Mastercard and Visa Card Services

“Alchemy Pay, the pioneer of the world’s first hybrid crypto-fiat gateway solution which bridges the gap between the fiat and crypto economies, has announced that the company will be launching Virtual Crypto-Linked Cards (“Virtual Cards”) to accelerate the adoption of cryptocurrencies in the payment sector.  The virtual cards – which can be linked to digital wallets such as Google Pay and PayPal – support over 40 cryptocurrencies and will be accepted across millions of merchants on the Visa and Mastercard network, including popular eCommerce platforms such as Amazon and eBay.”

August 5, 2021

On the web

Bank of America Unveils New Credit Card for High-Flying Business Travelers

Bloomberg

Bank of America Corp. is adding a commercial credit card for on-the-go businesspeople in a bet that work travel will eventually return. The new Executive Explorer card will offer statement credits for travel perks such as expedited security clearance at airports and enhanced insurance for lost or delayed luggage, the lender plans to announce Wednesday. As much as $5,000 in baggage claims will be covered, compared with $2,000 for competitors’ cards, Bank of America said.”

August 4, 2021

On the web

Unspent Stored Value on Starbucks Prepaid Cards Nears US$1.63bn

NFCW

“Starbucks customers have accumulated a total unspent balance of US$1.628bn on the company’s prepaid physical and digital reward and gift cards, the coffee giant’s 2021 Q3 earnings call has revealed. The company lists the total value its customers have stored on their prepaid cards but have not yet spent as ‘stored value card liability and portion of deferred revenue’ on its consolidated balance sheet.”

July 26, 2021

On the wires

FICO UK Credit Market Report May 2021: Markedly Lower Year-On-Year Increase in Credit Card Spend Suggests Consumers Are Adjusting to ‘New Normal’

“Global analytics software provider FICO today released its analysis of UK card trends for May 2021, which suggests that some consumers are practicing pragmatic financial management, as well as continuing to make use of savings accrued during the pandemic. There are, however, warning signs of the financial pressure growing for those already in debt. Whilst the effects of a full month of retail and hospitality re-openings were reflected in a further rise in card spend, the increase was just 4 percent compared to the 12 percent increase seen in April. This suggests that consumers foresee future pressure on income with the prospect of furlough support and payment holidays ending.”

July 21, 2021

On the wires

July 20, 2021

On the web

Amex Revamps Platinum Card With New ‘lifestyle-focused’ Benefits, Higher Annual Fee and Big Welcome Bonus

The Points Guy

“As we hopefully emerge from the worst of the pandemic, credit card companies are rethinking their premium card products . For years, one of the most popular and iconic rewards cards has been The Platinum Card® from American Express . Rumors swirled back in April about major potential coming changes to the Platinum card. But now it’s confirmed: Amex is revamping its consumer Amex Platinum card with a host of new benefits, a new welcome offer and yes, an increase to its annual fee.”

July 19, 2021

On the web

Credit Cards Revive Rewards Battle With New Cash-Back Offerings

Bloomberg

“There’s a new battle brewing in the credit-card rewards war, this time over putting cash back in customers’ wallets. Bank of America Corp. became the latest lender to debut a cash-back offering on Monday, when it unveiled its Unlimited Cash Rewards credit card, offering users 1.5% cash back on all purchases. That follows new products last month from rivals Wells Fargo & Co. and Citigroup Inc.

Citigroup Cuts Off Its $495-a-Year Rival to AmEx’s Platinum Card

Bloomberg

Citigroup Inc. stopped taking applications for its $495-a-year Prestige card, a competitor to American Express Co.’s Platinum line and JPMorgan Chase & Co.’s Sapphire Reserve. The bank will still serve existing Prestige customers, according to an emailed statement Friday, and encouraged prospective customers to instead consider products including the no-annual-fee Citi Custom Cash Card, which it introduced last month.”

June 25, 2021

On the web

June 17, 2021

On the web

Visa, Mastercard Face Antitrust Suit Over Square Payment Fees (1)

Bloomberg Law

“Visa Inc. and Mastercard Inc. are facing a new, proposed class action from small business owners who allege the credit card giants conspired with banks to improperly hike transaction fees on purchases made on Square Inc.’s devices. Hiking the “interchange” fees, which are charged by the credit card companies when customers swipe their cards using a Square device and ultimately passed onto merchants, violates 26 states’ antitrust laws, according to the complaint, filed Wedneday in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York.”

June 16, 2021

On the wires

Verizon Introduces Financial Literacy Program for Kids, Offering Parents Peace of Mind

“Today, Verizon introduced a new tool for parents to help their kids as they take charge of their financial future. Starting today, Verizon and non-Verizon customers can try Verizon Family Money for 30 days on us— a new, easy-to-use app and prepaid debit card that allows kids to save, spend, earn, and become money-savvy. Parents can step back and watch their kids become financially responsible as they help manage from the sidelines. Verizon partnered with Galileo , the API standard for card issuing and digital banking, to create the fintech platform Family Money is built on. The Family Money Prepaid Visa Card is issued by Metropolitan Commercial Bank.”

June 11, 2021

On the web

The Credit Card Wars Are Heating up Again As Citigroup Takes on JPMorgan With New 5% Cash-back Card

CNBC

“Banks have been falling over themselves to entice new credit card customers, dangling hefty 100,000 point bonuses and rolling out new products. Now, Citigroup is making a push in one of the fastest-growing card segments.   The bank on Thursday is launching a credit card that gives users 5% cash back on up to $500 of spending per month in a category – from restaurants to groceries or travel – and 1% cash back on all other purchases, according to Pam Habner , Citigroup’s head of U.S. branded cards. Unlike existing cards from competitors including JPMorgan Chase , the new Custom Cash card doesn’t require users to enroll in or select the categories for that 5% rate; instead it automatically applies the rate to a user’s top category of spending.”

June 9, 2021

On the web

Amazon Explores Replacing JPMorgan in Credit-Card Tie-Up

Bloomberg

Amazon.com Inc. is fielding bids to replace JPMorgan Chase & Co. as the issuer on its popular co-brand credit card as a fresh wave of competition for new card customers emerges. American Express Co. and Synchrony Financial are among those bidding on the portfolio, according to people with knowledge of the matter, who asked not to be identified discussing the negotiations. Representatives for the lenders declined to comment, while a spokesperson for Amazon didn’t have an immediate comment when reached by email on Tuesday”

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