All articles by Verdict Staff
Verdict Staff
Country Survey: The Netherlands
As one of the most advanced electronic payment markets in the world, it is surprising that the Netherlands is one of the laggards when it comes to migrating to EMV But, as John Hill reports, rising incidents of fraud and a push for more efficient payments is accelerating payment card usage. The Netherlands is one of the most resilient European economies and has a flourishing financial market, as well as healthy payment card usage although the slow speed at which it is migrating to EMV has cost it as it employs more and more of its resources to combat fraud.
The never-ending fight against fraud
In a recent white paper by Retail Decisions, a payment card issuer and a fraud prevention specialist, CEO Carl Clump puts forward the argument for examining and combating fraud on a much wider global basis than it currently is by many in the payments industry
Visa and MasterCard ride out recession
Visa and MasterCard have reported their latest quarterly results, and both will be buoyed by rising payment volumes in the face of recessionary pressures worldwide But, as Victoria Conroy reports, MasterCards results were dampened by the loss of three major debit portfolios switching to Visa. Visa Incs latest quarterly results encompass the fiscal first quarter of 2010 for the three months ended 30 September 2009
Cash continues to grow in Europe
Cash payments accounted for 78 percent of Europes 388 billion retail payment transactions in 2008, and the total cost of distributing, managing, handling, processing and recycling cash and of accepting cash payments was 84 billion ($115 billion)
Freedom brings its own rewards
The UK credit card loyalty market, which has been in a state of stagnation over the past few years, is set to be shaken up with the launch of Barclaycards Freedom scheme, available to over eight million cardholders and encompassing over 30,000 merchants in a range of sectors
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Promising growth on the Eastern Front
Cards International looks at the data concerning Central and Eastern European card numbers and transaction volumes, and finds that payment cards and transactions are continuing to grow strongly a heartening sign for payment networks and issuers If anyone needed convincing that the Central and Eastern European (CEE) region represents the future growth hotspots for credit and debit cards, one only needs to look at the numbers concerning card issuance and transaction volumes to be certain.
Latin America embraces EMV
With EMV migration now completed or nearly completed in several European and Asia-Pacific markets, the focus is switching to Latin America As Victoria Conroy reports, the overwhelming reason for banks in the region to upgrade to EMV is the need to reduce fraud, but banks are looking at other applications. Across the Latin America region, payment card usage is growing at reassuringly healthy rates despite recent economic upheaval
Awards highlight resilience, innovation
As the payments world adjusts to the post-credit crunch era, this years Cards and Payments Europe event will reflect the reshaping of business models a new era demands Last years Cards and Payments Europe event and awards were very much defined by the need to stay strong in an unpredictable economic climate, as payment players around the world shared strategies on reducing risk and preserving profitability.
Prepaid enters gaming rewards realm
The synergies between prepaid and video gaming are surprisingly obvious, and now prepaid issuers and game makers are aiming to tap into this huge youth-driven market by offering prepaid solutions tailored to this segment Of all the places for prepaid card rewards to emerge, the video gaming sector might seem a surprising one
Alternative ways to pay grab attention
Payment cards continue to take a greater share of overall spending, but the e-commerce sector is rapidly gaining in importance, as demonstrated by the success of PayPal and others What are the factors driving usage of e-commerce channels and what are the major risks and opportunities that lie ahead