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Even paper money isn't paper anymore: The U.K. is issuing new cash, even though a third of its citizens predict "paper" money will be obsolete in four years — but it turns out four years of paper may be too long. The Royal Bank of Scotland has issued its first polymer £5 notes, reports the BBC, which says 90% of RBS' £5 notes will be polymer by May 2017. RBS joins The Bank of England and Clydesdale Bank in issuing polymer notes. The plastic cash, which is designed by De La Rue, is smaller and more durable than paper money. De La Rue also added security features to make the bills harder to counterfeit, such as color changing ink. RBS has been issuing notes for 289 years, and usually has about £1.5 billion in notes in circulation on an average day.
Can contactless rescue London's black cabs? In a move Engadget describes as "too little too late," London's black cab fleet will be required to process contactless card transactions as of Oct. 31. The reason this feels so overdue is that contactless payments are already pervasive in the U.K., particularly for other London transit options, and ride-sharing apps like Uber have removed cash from the process entirely. That said, London taxis weren't completely behind the curve; apps like drivers can already use apps like Hailo to provide cashless rides.
London black cabs seen outside Liverpool Street station in London's financial district, Wednesday August 18 2004. Maker Manganese Bronze, whose stock has dropped by almost half in three months, said in February it would shift some production to China after a slump in tourism and firings across London's financial district hurt the taxi industry. Photographer: Graham Barclay/Bloomberg News
GRAHAM BARCLAY/BLOOMBERG NEWS
India's rising e-commerce power: Smartphones have been the key to financial inclusion in India, and the the use of digital transactions is paying off. India is on past to become the second largest e-commerce market in the world within the next two decades, reports Finextra, citing research from Worldpay. While India currently accounts for less than one percent of the global e-commerce market, 28% year over year growth will make the country a $63.7 billion market by 2020 and a $2.03 trillion market by 2034—only China will be larger, and the U.S.. will be third, the wire service reports. The growth will be driven by internet penetration; about 730 million Indians will be internet users by 2020, or 250 million more than today; and relatively inexpensive mobile data plans, according to the wire service.
Android Pay gets creative: Google is bringing perhaps its most powerful marketing tool to the Android Pay mobile wallet: the Google Doodle. The company's search engine is well known for replacing its logo with fanciful cartoons to celebrate holidays and other special events, and now the same treatment has come to the Android Pay wallet, which now plays Halloween-themed cartoons whenever a user completes a payment in-store.
Qualcomm seeks to buy NXP for $39 billion - CNET CNET • David Katzmaier Confirming rumors, the world's dominant maker of wireless chips signs a deal to acquire fellow chipmaker in the largest semiconductor deal ever.
Ingenico is launching a new platform to make mobile payments easier Business Insider • B.I. Intelligence This story was delivered to BI Intelligence "Payments Briefing" subscribers. To learn more and subscribe, please click here. Ingenico ePayments, the digital commerce division of Ingenico, announced the launch of a new digital commerce model. The platform, called TapHero, will allow users...
Early Warning's Zelle adds behavioral biometrics to boost its security When Early Warning acquired clearXchange—soon to be renamed Zelle—late last year, the acquisition was applauded by banks that make up the P-to-P payments network because it brought Early Warning's various fraud detection technologies into play.
After a drop in fintech venture capital exit value from IPOs, neobanks and other financial tech startups are closely watching Chime's initial public offering.
The next generation of artificial intelligence can be a digitized always-on personal shopper, researcher and financial assistant, taking even the buzz of ChatGPT to another level. It's early in the game, but developers are looking for ways to gain an edge.
Banks scored well in the tax bill out of Ways and Means this week, with wins on S Corps and rural lending, but have so far lost out on credit union taxes and additional burdens on payments competitors.
MainStreet Bancshares in Fairfax hopes investors will endorse its plan to refocus on basic community banking after shuttering its embedded banking unit. But a prominent shareholder is urging management to sell.
