All articles by Franchesca Hashemi

Franchesca Hashemi

60% of UK consumers victims of card fraud

UK banks are basing decisions to repay victims of card fraud based “on a hunch”, according to an investigation by Which? The consumer watchdog found that three in five people had experienced card fraud, out of a survey of more than 3,000 respondents. Franchesca Hashemi reports on the consequences of this mentality

Contactless spending in Britain up 560% in last 12 months, according to MasterCard

British shoppers have increased their contactless spending, according to figures released by two payments giants.

UK contactless payments surge forth

Contactless payments in the UK are increasingly favoured by shoppers, according to figures released by two payments giants. Franchesca Hashemi consolidates the latest data from MasterCard and Barclaycard to give a snapshot of the UK’s contactless scene present and future and what are the main drivers of the trend

Tap and go overdrawn- does offline NFC pose risk?

Contactless cards are effective, clean and fast – the technology links offline and online data to create a speedy user experience that drives sales and bolsters the UK’s image within the current payments paradigm. Franchesca Hashemi asks Howard Berg, senior vice president of Gemalto, what the risks are

Manchester’s Oyster-style ticket system in disarray after contractor admits it ‘cannot deliver’

Greater Manchester’s transport chiefs have dropped the firm responsible for installing tap-to-pay technology after a series of delays

SIA and JCB International sign Italian payments deal

SIA, an Italian company specialising in electronic payments, and JCB International (JCBI), a wholly owned subsidiary of Tokyo-based JCB, have signed a five year deal for the processing of transactions at JCB merchants in Italy

Bringing financial services out of its shell

Financial institution brands have been known to lack social media foresight for a number of reasons such as regulatory concerns and unimaginative marketing. Franchesca Hashemi examines a report delivered by Innovalue on how to engage effectively in the rapidly growing environment of digital consumption

The future of Apple and contactless payments

What will become of contactless payments? Apple Pay’s shaky UK launch coupled with vast amounts of tap-to-pay technologies may leave some consumers wondering: who sets the pace of change in this sector, and am I willing to keep up? Franchesca Hashemi investigates

UK trumps top in contactless payments

More than 1 billion contactless transactions have been made across Europe over the last year, worth €12.6bn ($13.85), according to a Visa report published on Monday 6 July 2015.