Headlines:
Fed: Quicker Service to Mexico
The Federal Reserve is preparing to accelerate the completion of automated clearing house payments to Mexico.
Starting in July, ACH payments originating in the United States will reach Mexico in one day instead of two, according to Richard R. Oliver, an executive vice president and the retail payments product manager for the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta.
"In a cross-border situation, that's as good as it gets," Mr. Oliver said in an interview Monday in San Antonio at the Payments 2005 conference, sponsored by Nacha, the electronic payments association.
Elizabeth McQuerry, an assistant vice president in the Atlanta Fed's retail payments office, said the government sends 23,000 Social Security payments to Mexico every month but that there has been little interest to date for commercial payments.
The Fed routes the payments through Banco de Mexico, the country's central bank, which acts as a gateway operator.
Alberto Hernandez, the head officer for Banco de Mexico's retail payments systems, said there is a "huge demand" for ways to easily send money to Mexico. He noted that about $16 billion was sent there last year, mostly as remittances. "I think we can take part of that market."
DoCoMo Mulling Bank Alliance
NTT DoCoMo Inc., Japan's largest mobile-phone company, is considering a partnership with a financial institution to help diversify its revenue stream, according to Financial Times.
DoCoMo, which is majority-owned by Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corp. of Tokyo, views payment settlement through wireless handsets as one way to expand its business, the London newspaper reported Wednesday.
DoCoMo says enhancing its phones' payment capabilities will help reduce subscriber defections. Its third-generation phone sets include an electronic wallet feature that can be used for purchases.
According to the newspaper, DoCoMo is expected to report a 25% drop in operating earnings and a 4.5% decline in revenue for the fiscal year that ended March 31.
