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

On The Border Partners with Up ‘n go to Bring QR Code Payments to Restaurants Nationwide

EIN News

"On The Border Mexican Grill & Cantina, the world’s largest Mexican casual dining brand, has partnered with Up ‘n go to bring QR code payments to all 109 of its corporate-owned restaurants. At the end of their meal, guests are presented with printed checks that contain unique QR codes. Without downloading an app or creating an account, guests can scan the QR codes to pay with Apple Pay, Google Pay, or credit card; plus, pay the check in full or split it with others at the table."

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."

Industry

Balance Introduces Surcharging Program to Alleviate B2B Credit Card Burdens for Merchants

Business Wire

"Balance, the preferred B2B payment platform for leading businesses, announced today the launch of its surcharge solution. This capability enables suppliers to implement a surcharge fee for credit card transactions, providing flexible payment options to buyers while preserving healthy profit margins."

Industry

Stripping the Magnetic Stripe: What's Taking So Long?

Bank Info Security

"The world is moving on from magnetic stripe payment cards, with one notable exception: the United States. Credit card issuers, banks and consumers agree the magnetic stripe is prone to hacking - so why is one of the largest markets for plastic payment still clinging to decades-old technology?"

Industry

HSBC Trialing Quantum-Safe Financial Transaction Network in the UK

Cointelegraph

"London–based HSBC, the eighth-largest bank in the world, will conduct a series of trials and experiments utitlizing quantum encryption technology in collaboration with Amazon Web Services, BT and Toshiba. HSBC is the first bank to commit to trials on the new quantum “metro” network, a secure transaction system that utilizes unbreakable encryption to secure transactions via quantum cryptography."

Industry

Central Bank Digital Currency Global Interoperability Principles

World Economic Forum

"The exploration of central bank digital currencies (CBDC) has gained significant momentum worldwide. With over 100 countries actively engaged in CBDC research and development, there is growing recognition of CBDCs as transformative tools in the future of digital payments. To ensure successful implementation and promote interoperability, global coordination becomes paramount."

Industry

How Banks and Businesses Can Prep for the FedNow Instant-Payment System

Computerworld

"FedNow will be the first of its kind central bank instant payment system in the US and could revolutionize how businesses and consumers pay and receive money. But not everyone is prepared for it."

Industry

Confronting Financial Fraud in Payments with the Help of AI

Information Week

"What new technologies can financial entities reasonably explore and rely on? Speakers at this week’s FinTech Connect North America conference in New York City shared some of their real-world answers to that question as they discussed dealing with fraud and of course what ways AI can be used by their organizations."

Industry

EMVCo’s Pursues Standards in ‘Biometric On Card’ Initiative

FindBiometrics

"EMVCo is working on a set of performance and security requirements for fingerprint-scanning payment cards, a project the organization is calling its “Biometric on Card” initiative. A document outlining its requirements is expected to be published for EMVCo Associate review by the end of this month."

Industry

Expanding the Benefits of Financial Services

World Bank Blogs

"Having a financial account is essential for adults to save, borrow, make payments, and manage unexpected expenses. However, financial products come with risks, especially for those with limited financial knowledge or living in countries with poor consumer protection systems ."

Industry

The Digital Dollar Project Publishes a Risk Framework for Consideration of a U.S. CBDC

PR Newswire

"The Digital Dollar Project (DDP) today released the first in a series of risk- and privacy- focused working papers, "Secure Adoption of a Digital Dollar – Operational and Compliance Risks for the U.S. Banking Sector."

Industry

Steak n Shake to Implement PopID Tech in Self-Ordering Kiosks

Verdict Food Service

"US-based casual restaurant chain Steak ‘n Shake has announced that it will implement the PopID platform on its self-ordering kiosks for loyalty rewards and automated payments. PopID claims its technology will enable the restaurant chain to transform digital interactions and payments using consumer-initiated biometric verification."

Industry

Chartis Research Ranks LexisNexis Risk Solutions as Category Leader in Four Payment Risk Categories

PR Newswire

LexisNexis® Risk Solutions announced that Chartis Research has recognized the company as Category Leader in the Payment Risk Solutions 2023: Market and Vendor Landscape Report across four categories in the payment risk solutions space.

Industry

EMVCo to Issue Performance Requirements for Biometric Payment Cards

NFCW

"EMVCo has launched a biometric payment card initiative with the aim of producing a performance requirements document and associated approval and evaluation frameworks that will “enable biometric payment cards to deliver both seamless and secure payment experiences”."

Industry

CBDCS Threaten Privacy

International Banker

"Numerous governments across the globe have begun adopting central bank digital currencies, more commonly known as CBDCs, and many more are considering doing so. This is an ominous development for citizens since CBDCs represent a gateway to surveillance and control that will prove irresistible to most governments."

Industry

eCurrency and CMA Partner to Provide an Integrated CBDC - RTGS Solution for Central Banks

PR Newswire

"eCurrency Mint and CMA announced today that they are partnering to provide central banks an integrated Real Time Gross Settlement (RTGS) and eCurrency Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) solution."

Industry

Vizo Financial Is Ready for FedNow Launch

Credit Union Times

"The long-awaited launch of the Federal Reserve’s FedNow payment system is on the horizon, with a scheduled start date in July. Many credit unions and credit union-supporting organizations have been preparing for months for this new service which will allow members to send and receive money immediately, no matter the day or time."