7.9.19 Your morning briefing

The information you need to start your day, from PaymentsSource and around the Web:

Playing local

The Indian government plans to eliminate bank charges for electronic payments for businesses with an annual revenue of more than about $8 million, a move that's designed to incentivize these retailers to accept UPI and other Indian government-supported payment methods.

The move covers mostly larger retailers, who make up most of India's credit card transactions, reports The Times of India, adding these retailers currently pay fees of about 2%. The Indian government says that starting Nov. 1, these retailers must provide lower-cost electronic payment alternatives.

U.S. card brands have also squabbled with Indian regulators over requirements to store payment data locally. Mastercard and Visa are pursuing the Indian market, which is still largely cash-based but has significant potential.

Breach fine

The U.K.'s Information Commissioner's office has slapped British Airways with a fine of about $230 million over a 2018 data breach that exposed the records of more than 500,000 travelers who were booking travel online.

The ICO cited what it called "poor security" for login, payment card and booking details. International Airlines Group, British Airways' parent company, protested the ruling, contending it did not find any fraudulent activities in its own accounts and responded to the incident quickly. The airline also suggested it may appeal.

The British Airways breach reportedly involved CVV codes, suggesting the attack took place during live transactions, a particularly difficult type of payment fraud to prevent.

Rough start

7-Eleven Japan has suspended its mobile payment feature after a glitch allowed an outsider to make fake charges to consumer accounts. The app was live for less than a week.

Hackers can use a consumer's birthdate, email, and phone number to send password reset requests to unsuspecting users, reports The Verge, adding it's a relatively simple attack that has already resulted in about $500,000 in bogus charges.

7-Eleven Japan has stopped the app from charging linked cards and set up a support line for users, according to The Verge.

Libra counter

China may speed its digital currency project because of the threat posed by Facebook's planned cryptocurrency Libra.

Wang Xin, head of research for People's Bank of China, said Libra could have a large influence on the international monetary system, and as such the PBoC is paying "high attention" to Libra and could ramp up its own digital currency project, reports CoinDesk, adding the initiative is already several years old.

China is also concerned about the role the U.S. dollar will play in the "basket" of currencies that Facebook will use to manage Libra's stability.

From the Web

Wirecard Supports Online Supermarket getnow With Seamless, Flexible Payment Solutions
Yahoo Finance | Mon July 8, 2019 - Wirecard, the global innovation leader for digital financial technology, is driving the trend towards online grocery shopping with state-of-the-art payment methods through its collaboration with getnow, a leading German online supermarket.

Mobile wallet operators race to be the best
The Straits Times | Mon July 8, 2019 - The race is on for mobile wallet operators to win as many customers as they can in an increasingly crowded and growing market. They have taken steps to improve user experience, including reducing the number of clicks needed to complete payment and shaving the time it takes to load their apps.

Citi's electronic banking platforms safer with payment outlier detection service
The Straits Times | Tue July 9, 2019 - Citi has launched its payment outlier detection solution in 90 countries, including Singapore, which allows clients to review and approve payments which deviate from their past patterns of payment activity.

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