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Apple Pay feels charitable: Donating to charity has long been a part of mobile payments technology, and Apple has entered into a number of partnerships to link Apple Pay to nonprofits. The payment app has partnered with American Red Cross, Doctors without Borders, Save the Children and World Wildlife Federation, which will support Apple Pay by next week, according to CNET. A handful of others, including the American Cancer Society, United Way and DonorsChoose.org, will integrate with Apple Pay "soon.” Apple says the move will enable "instant donations" that should improve fundraising--one of the top benefits of in-app payments or contactless payments on site is the ability to store credentials, enabling repeat payments with minimal navigation.
Cross-border blockchain reaches southeast Asia: International transactions supported by blockchain are accelerating quickly, given the distributed ledger's ability to cut parties our of the process and drain costs and time from payments. OCBC Bank is an early adopter in Southeast Asia, and has just completed a test transfer between the bank's subsidiaries in Singapore and Malaysia, reports Finextra. The bank worked with BCS Information Systems, a local technology vendor, and is part of a bank effort to evangelize blockchain elsewhere. "We hope this will be a catalyst for more banks to adopt the blockchain technology so that, together, we can achieve efficiency and cost effectiveness while delivering more high-value financial services to our consumers," Praveen Raine, senior vice president of group operations and technology at OCBC Bank told the technology wire.
Closed-loop virtual currency takes shape at PwC: PwC has launched a new service designed to power a range of digital assets including e-wallets, international payments, point of sale services and trading. The International Business Times reports the cloud based service "Vulcan," which is in pilot, enables banks and businesses to offer digital currency products to clients and partners in a transparent and trusted ecosystem, according to PwC. The company hopes Vulcan can solve trust issues financial institutions have had with blockchain, bitcoin and virtual currency through PwC's compliance and technology capabilities. Vulcan was built in partnership with Bloq, a blockchain technology company; Libra, a blockchain integration and analytics provider; and Netki, a digital identity startup.
The color of money: India's new 2,000 rupee notes are now in circulation, following a week of turmoil as the government suddenly swapped out 80% of its currency and digital payment companies stepped in to attempt to fill the gap. The bills are magenta with Mangalyaan imprinted on the reverse side, and include embedded security features to prevent counterfeiting and other crimes, reports Deccan Herald. The currency has alternative versions including images of India's first spacecraft launch. The new 500 rupee notes are stone grey and include an image of the Indian heritage site Red Fort. Other bills will include images of Mahatma Gandhi.
From the Web (powered by Wiser)
Cardtek and NXP Collaborate to Introduce Digital Payment Solution for Wearables
Point of Sale News • Nicole Apostle
Launch of Innovative Digital Enablement Platform Enables Consumers to Make Safer and Easier Transactions in a Convenient Wearables Solution IRVINE, Calif. (November 11, 2016) – Cardtek , a leading payment technologies provider, has partnered with NXP® Semiconductors to introduce an innovative payment.
Alibaba completely smashed its Singles' Day record
Business Insider • B.I. Intelligence
This story was delivered to BI Intelligence "E-Commerce Briefing" subscribers. To learn more and subscribe, please click here. Alibaba broke its sales record from last year's Singles' Day just 20 hours into the event, China's biggest online shopping holiday of the year.
MIMO Wi-Fi Hack Sees Passwords by 3D-Scanning Your Fingers
Gizmodo UK • Gary Cutlack
Malicious hotspot tracks motion and apparently works.
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