Analytics

The Justice Department is grabbing the spotlight with Operation Choke Point, a controversial investigation that's drawing U.S. banks deeper into the fight against consumer fraud. But below the radar, another federal agency is tiptoeing in the same direction, and again drawing stiff opposition from the banking industry.

Swift, the financial messaging service, has launched a new version of its Bankers World Online directory, which includes added information to aid international payments.

To improve the chances that consumers will value a particular issuer's card out of the many in their wallets, that issuer must use all of the data at its disposal to make the card experience personal, bankers say.

Facebook knows that if it misuses consumer data, it will scare its users off. But the social network also knows that by keeping consumers aware of what it is doing and giving them a chance to opt out, it can fundamentally change the way advertisers such as card issuers do business.

According to the Millennial Disruption Index, millennials believe payments innovation will come from outside their bank, with nearly half showing more confidence in what startups and technology companies add to payments than what their banks do. This presents a challenge and an opportunity for financial institutions moving forward.

Russian President Vladimir Putin said Visa Inc. and MasterCard Inc. will lose market share in Russia after they blocked some transactions because of U.S. sanctions on individuals and banks.

As state regulators take more interest in Bitcoin, third-party vendors are looking to apply the expertise they built in other markets to digital currency. One such vendor, Strevus, has a background in securitization, which is another volatile and risky market.

Quick Fuel, a provider of fueling solutions for commercial fleets and other U.S. businesses, has partnered with payments processor Comdata in an attempt to speed fueling and boost security.

Samsung Electronics Ltd. and semiconductor designer ARM have joined the FIDO (Fast IDentity Online) Alliance board of directors.

Global payments processor Optimal Payments Plc has reached a five-year agreement with Ontario Lottery and Gaming.

Until recently, Venus' approach to customer rewards was simple. It simply didn't have a program.

JPMorgan Chase will build on its developments in tokenization for a digital wallet that it plans to roll out by the end of the year.

After alerting its customers in January that its arts and crafts store chain had suffered a potential data breach, Michaels Stores Inc. confirmed last week that at least 2.6 million cards may have been affected.

The merchant's website made it seem like an ordinary seller of car washing equipment. But a closer look revealed it was a portal to crime, according to Melissa Andrews.

Bitcoin companies are looking to win business from large corporations by offering more of the security features that traditional payments providers have long used.

Citigroup's (NYSE: C) better-than-expected quarterly results offered a break from months of bad news, but it will have to be a short one.

An engineering student at Lund University in Sweden has created software that allows shoppers to pay for food by scanning their hands.

SmartMetric plans to introduce a facial identification feature to its biometric payment cards within the next six months.

Citigroup Inc., the third-biggest U.S. bank, reported an unexpected profit increase, beating analysts' estimates as the company recouped funds previously set aside for loan losses.

Visa has created a new top post overseeing risk and public policy and named its next general counsel.