All articles by Verdict Staff
Verdict Staff
Protecting profitability
With prepaid card use expanding throughout Europe and continued innovation in debit card issuance despite the financial crisis, it was fitting the 2009 MasterCard Europe Debit and Prepaid Conference should be themed around payments and profitability in turbulent times.The conference was attended by around 300 of Europes top card industry players, from issuers and processors to public bodies and government representatives, many of whom contributed their ideas and opinions as to exactly where the industry was heading.One of the issues surrounding the use of prepaid cards is their relatively high fees, especially in comparison with debit which, for the average consumer, has all the benefits and few of the charges associated with prepaid
US issuers agree to consumer debt relief
In a significant development, some of the leading issuers have agreed to a package of rate cuts and relief measures in an effort to be seen as consumer-friendly, as Charles Davis reports.In a telling reflection of both the times and of the political climate, the 10 largest credit card issuers in the US have agreed to give struggling cardholders deeper rate cuts and relief from a variety of late and over-limit fees, the National Foundation for Credit Counseling (NFCC) said.The deal, hammered out between the foundation and the issuers, will apply to consumer credit card customers seeking to qualify for debt repayment plans through the Silver Spring, Maryland-based non-profits counselling services NFCC offers debt reduction counseling through a network of 850 offices nationwide, and has witnessed meteoric growth in consumers seeking assistance with crushing debt loads often fuelled in large part by credit card usage.NFCC officials praised the concessions, citing rising numbers of clients who can not afford even the most basic repayment plans without some easing of fees and rates.Susan Keating, the NFCCs president and chief executive, said the concessions were a response to the organisations call in late 2008 for issuers to enhance the concessions they traditionally offer to troubled borrowers.Many consumers are facing serious financial problems, and they should be given every opportunity to qualify for an affordable programme that meets their individual circumstances and that puts them back on the road to financial stability, said Keating
Through the downturn and beyond
In his first guest article for Cards International, Matthew Lanford, head of prepaid at MasterCard Europe, outlines his view of the development of the European prepaid industry so far, and where opportunities may be found in the current economic climate, particularly for those brave enough to innovate For those readers who do not know me, I was based previously in the US as part of MasterCards Global Prepaid Product & Solutions Group, where my responsibilities included managing MasterCards commercial prepaid strategy and range of prepaid health solutions
Fraud: the enemy within?
As recession bites, card issuers and players are experiencing a surge in first-party credit card fraud and ATM and debit fraud A range of recent studies gives varying reasons for the upsurge, from individuals purposefully defrauding card issuers, to mass compromised card data, as Victoria Conroy reports It is a commonly-accepted saying in the payments industry that fraudsters always manage to stay one step ahead, but technology initiatives such as EMV and real-time transaction monitoring are enabling payment players to catch up to a degree.But difficult economic circumstances are now producing a rise in rather more old-fashioned types of fraud, the most notable of which is first-party fraud, where a customer applies for and receives a credit card with no intention of repayment, either using their real identity, a false identity or misrepresent their real identity to open accounts
Stress leads to CCB stake sale
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consetetur sadipscing elitr, sed diam nonumy eirmod tempor invidunt ut labore et dolore magna aliquyam erat, sed diam voluptua
Subscribe to our Newsletter
Get industry leading news, data and analysis delivered to your inbox
Penny pinching at the payment networks
Visa and MasterCards latest quarterly results starkly illustrate how debit is continuing to take a bigger share of payments worldwide, with Visas debit volumes in the US surpassing credit volumes for the first time It is not just consumers that are reining in their spending these days the payment networks Visa and MasterCard are cutting their discretionary spending too, most notably in the areas of advertising and marketing
Heartland and RBS back on PCI DSS list
After suffering massive data breaches in late 2008, card payment processors RBS WorldPay and Heartland Payment Systems have been put back onto Visas PCI DSS Validated Service Providers list.RBS WorldPay, taken off the list after data for up to 1.5 million cardholders was exposed in November 2008, has been reinstated after passing its annual PCI DSS assessment in early May Heartland Payment Systems, victim of a much larger breach, with potentially over 100 million cards being compromised, has also been reinstated, but has declared the fee imposed on it by MasterCard in relation to the incident illegal.The fine for Heartland was imposed by MasterCard because of an alleged failure on the processors part to take correct action initially once the breach was discovered
More pressure for card issuers
Charles Davis reports.Even as some of the nations leading credit card executives trudged into the White House at the invitation of President Obama, a new study added fuel to the fire over credit card reform.A study by the Pew Charitable Trusts found that nearly every US credit card has at least one feature the Federal Reserve and other regulators would deem unfair and deceptive under new rules finalised last year.The Philadelphia-based non-profit organisation based its study on a review of the terms and conditions of 400 cards offered by 12 of the nations largest credit card issuers, and found widespread examples of precisely the sort of card industry practices that have raised the ire of lawmakers and consumer groups and gained the attention of the nations commander-in-chief.Pew researchers examined the cards offered on 15 and 16 December 2008
VisaNet registers for Brazil IPO
VisaNet is planning to offer shares on the Sao Paolo Stock Exchange (Bovespa) in the next 90 days, according to its bank shareholders, although a specific date has not been set.Banco Bradesco owns 40 percent of VisaNet; Banco do Brasil owns 32 percent; and Banco Santander, through its ABN Banco Real subsidiary, owns 14 percent Visa owns 10 percent of VisaNet, with the remaining 4 percent held by other investors.VisaNets IPO is set to be one of the largest in Brazil and could raise between BRL5 billion ($2.33 billion) and BRL10 billion
Interchange the next big battlefront
US politicians and merchant groups, not content with bringing credit card billing practices under the spotlight, are now urging regulators to scrutinise interchange