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Credit Card Processing — News
American Express Debuts “My Offers” for iPhone App
American Express has entered the mobile deals market and by the looks of it, they’re way ahead of the game. Dubbed “My Offers,” the new addition to Amex’s iPhone App allows card holders to view discount and refund offers close to their proximity, not something terribly revolutionary in itself — The real clincher is that these offers are tailored to each consumer based off prior purchases they have made, something that Groupon or Google do not have direct access to. Here’s how it works: a consumer logs into the App and on the home screen there’s an offer to view “Offers Available For You.” Once clicked, a relatively large list will appear with the option to add the offer to the card. The offers must be “loaded” to a card, after which a consumer can purchase with their Amex within a certain amount of time (usually weeks or even months) … Continue reading
MasterCard Study Finds Users Spend More with Mobile Processing
Findings from a new study conducted by MasterCard Advisors indicate that consumers utilizing contactless payments spend 30 percent more than those who swipe an actual card. The study, which followed consumer behavior for 15 months, was published to coincide with the launch of the company’s new mobile processing solution, MasterCard PayPass. Participants of the study were separated into three spending categories — low, medium and high — according to their average monthly spending. The study found the 30 percent increase in spending volume across all three categories, which is great news for small business owners that are willing to jump onboard with mobile processing technology. Also noted was a substantial increase for preferring a particular card account — the one attached to MasterCard PayPass. Other interesting findings were increases in certain consumer behaviors including online purchases (between 8.8 and 33.3 percent), setting up recurring payments (between 11.8 and 28.5 percent … Continue reading
Studies and Experts Agree that the Future Belongs to Mobile Processing
According to a study by JiWire, a leader in mobile advertising, nearly 37 percent of all smartphone owners are utilizing some sort of mobile wallet for point of sale transactions. JiWire also found that 49 percent of smartphone owners are comparison shopping on their devices while inside a brick and mortar business and 15 percent are comparing in-store prices against listed prices on the company’s website. Another intriguing finding was that tablet owners are twice as likely to comparison shop while in a store only to end up purchasing through their mobile device. Males, as well as those between age 25 and 44 were 53 percent more likely to compare prices with their mobile device while in-store, the study found. A separate study conducted by the Pew Internet and American Life Project has found that nearly 65 percent of mobile experts believe that mobile wallet technology will be the predominant … Continue reading
JPMorgan Chase Is Joining the Prepaid Debit Card Market
JPMorgan Chase has joined the rapidly growing prepaid debit card market calling the new card Liquid Chase, having implemented the new service in nearly 200 branches and announced plans for nationwide rollout this summer. Prepaid cards have surged in popularity recently for consumers that have difficulty obtaining credit cards because of less than desirable credit profiles. Chase hopes to quickly establish itself in the prepaid market by offering Liquid Chase with competitive rates, about $59 annually, which is considerably lower than the average of $150 to $250 annually. The prepaid card market is notorious for various fees including customer service, which Chase insists they won’t take advantage of, though they will charge a $2 fee for deposits made in non-Chase ATMs on top of a $4.95 monthly fee. Also, unlike traditional debit cards which offer overdraft protection, these cards will be declined if insufficient funds are available at the time … Continue reading
NewtPay Mobile Is Now Available: Cost Effective Mobile Credit Card Processing
Mobile credit card processing is becoming increasingly important for businesses owners and especially for those companies that conduct business on the go. With today’s advanced technology, new mobile credit card processing solutions are becoming more readily available. has just introduced a new product that allows companies to accept credit cards on the go. With NewtPay Mobile, businesses can now easily and affordably turn their smartphone or tablet into a mobile credit card processing machine. NewtPay Mobile comes with a free downloadable app and there are no additional upfront charges to worry about. NewtPay Mobile is cost effective and offers pay as you go service to businesses starting as low as
Exorbitant Credit Card Processing Fees and Alleged Price Fixing Under Review in Canada
Things are heating up in Canada where a federal Competition Bureau tribunal has been hearing of the plight of Canadian merchants who are paying some of the highest processing rates in the world — nearly double what Europeans and Australians retailers are paying. Currently, merchants are paying up to 3 percent of the total purchase in processing fees which is eating away at their profit margins, causing some business owners to lobby for the ability to charge more for credit card transactions. Current law forbids retailers from tacking an additional charge on credit card purchases, something both Visa and MasterCard contractually prohibit and insist is a form of discrimination against consumers who prefer charging over cash and debit transactions. Anti-competitive concerns arose from what business owners that allege price fixing between Visa and MasterCard to raise their fees within a month of each other in the summer of 2009. With … Continue reading
Visa and MasterCard’s Q1 Earnings Surpass Analysts’ Predictions
Forget the analysts’ predictions from last week — Both Visa and MasterCard reported impressive earning during their first quarter, with dramatic increases from Q1 the previous year. Visa reported a 30 percent increase and MasterCard reported a 21 percent increase, which many analysts didn’t believe possible due to the on-going recession that’s caused many Americans to shun their credit cards and revert to cash. Analysts had also predicted a substantial increase in debit transactions, but the outcome was actually quite modest for Visa, which reported a 4 percent rise. MasterCard on the other hand, experienced growth of 21 percent in debit transactions, which seems to imply that the much smaller processor is staking its claim in the transaction war, something Visa won’t let happen without a fight. Visa CEO Joseph Saunders boasted that he had signed 9 out of 10 major credit card companies to deals with Visa for the … Continue reading
Consumer Bureau Seeks To Address Concern Over Arbitration Clauses In Financial Contracts
The U.S. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is launching an investigation into financial product contract clauses that keep disputes out of the justice system. Arbitration clauses in such contracts require consumers to use alternative dispute resolution through a third party organization, thus revoking their right to sue. The CFPB investigation will include a study on the prevalence of arbitration clauses, what types of claims are brought to arbitration and how the “technique” impacts both companies and consumers. Public Citizen, a consumer advocate group, published a report in 2007 that shows such arbitration clauses in contracts held by California consumers tilt the scales in favor of financial institutions more than 90 percent of the time. The organization is building an online gallery of corporations that include “pre-dispute arbitration clauses” in their contracts, found at http://www.citizen.org/rigged-justice-rogues-gallery.
Q1 Reports for Visa and MasterCard Out Tomorrow
Both Visa and MasterCard will procure their quarterly earning reports tomorrow with analysts anticipating declining profits due to lower credit card usage, and the processors hoping debit transaction can make up for the loss. MasterCard will report its earnings are the beginning of the day and Visa will report after the bell and will serve as insight into how the economy has fared since the Christmas season. Though credit card usage has been down for years, a few recent months showed promising growth, only to quickly start declining again. These moments have unfortunately stifled enthusiasm in the media and put fear in the mind of the consumer to avoid rotating credit card balances. As such, consumers have relied less on credit cards these days, carrying $800 billion in credit card debt in February, a drop of 15 percent from the beginning of recession in late 2007. For Visa and MasterCard, … Continue reading
Citi Philippines and Planet Payment Announce Seamless Foreign Exchange Processing
Planet Payment, the leading international foreign currency payment processor, has teamed up with Citi Philippines, the largest foreign bank in the Philippines, to provide Planet Payment’s Pay in Your Currency service along with the MICROS Payment Gateway to the merchant account and hotel merchant partners of Citi Philippines, respectively. Pay in Your Currency offers Citibank credit card holders the option to pay in their native currency while visiting the Philippines. Besides offering the transaction details, both the foreign and local currency (Philippine Peso) are printed on a customer’s receipt along with the transaction’s rate of exchange. In the past travelers would have to physically exchange their country’s currency for the local currency of the Philippines, which cost both time and extra commission fees for the local business. The MICROS Payment Gateway, offered to Citi Philippines’ hotel merchants, is designed to fit in with the MICROS suite of enterprise hospitality products … Continue reading
