Bank technology

Banks are starting to take a closer look at the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act, though its rules do not take effect until 2013. And even though FATCA is focused on companies based outside the U.S., its effects may gradually influence domestic financial institutions.

A California start-up is building what it calls the "Visa of prepaid." But it has a long ways to go before it becomes a household name.

A Plano, Texas, check-imaging technology provider has settled its federal patent infringement claims against U.S. Bancorp for undisclosed terms.

When online shoppers are looking for alternatives to credit and debit cards, Mopay hopes they will consider adding charges to their Internet service provider's bill.

As more banks allow smartphones to remotely access sensitive systems, they may need to beef up their security for handhelds.

Online "hacktivist" group Anonymous claimed Sunday it had stolen a trove of emails and credit-card information from U.S.-based security firm Stratfor's clients, and vowed additional attacks.

IMGCAP(1)]

United Bankshares in Charleston, W. Va., and local organizations in the Washington area figured out that cooperating on a bike program could improve big-city commutes, recruit new customers and help the unbanked.

Modern technology allows a new entrant in the peer-to-peer lending space, SoMoLend, to create a more targeted matching system for small-business borrowers and lenders.

Visa Inc. is setting aside $1.6 billion to cover potential costs from pending lawsuits, the credit-card processor said Friday.

By outsourcing large parts of its core, the Washington State community bank is removing more than a dozen different vendor relationships.

A Northern Michigan gas station redesigned the payment process around drivers' IDs to deter dishonest motorists that were driving off without paying for their gas.

eBay's acquisition of BillSafe, which lets shoppers pay for purchases only after they receive a mailed invoice, shows its commitment to the instant-credit model. But observers warn that this model requires finely-tuned risk management to guard against fraud or excess delinquencies.

The firm believes the decline of the postal service and lingering cash-flow problems for businesses equal a robust opportunity for electronic billing services.

While banks are in varying stages of readiness for compliance, the FFIEC's guidance has affected smaller and regional banks disproportionately. Many must cobble together security systems from multiple vendors to make the grade.

eBay announced today that it has acquired Billsafe, a provider of purchase-on-invoice technology in Germany. eBay plans to combine Billsafe with its PayPal subsidiary in Germany.

Fiserv core users can re-evaluate and stress their loan portfolios with Sageworks tools under the new partnership.

The explosion of mobile applications, especially those involving banking and payments, is almost certain to lead to ingenious new hacker attacks on consumer data next year.

By placing credit scores on mobile devices, the credit management site is hoping to give shoppers another tool to use to gauge whether or not they should or can make a purchase.

About one-third of consumers use mobile banking; of those who don’t, 39% are worried about security.