Credit

Narrower loan spreads and lower average loan balances, partially reversed by lower revenue reversals associated with a reduction in net charge-offs, helped drive fourth-quarter reductions in both net revenue and net income for the Card Services & Auto unit of JPMorgan Chase & Co., the issuer announced Jan. 13.

All of China’s bank-led payment platforms and third-party payment providers would have to ensure their customers use their real names when paying online under regulations the People’s Bank of China proposed Jan. 5.

The Indian government plans to expand the scope of its widely used Kisan credit card to enable farmers to use it also as a debit card linked to a separate account that earns interest, an official at the Ministry of Agriculture privy to the discussions tells PaymentsSource.

As European banks continue to establish standards for a Single Euro Payments Area, not nearly as much attention has focused on a similar process for ecommerce or mobile payments in the euro zone.

Credit card users have been unusually diligent in paying off their bills recently in the wake of the financial crisis. Their discipline slipped a bit late last year, however, which led revolving credit to post a surprise jump in November.

Fresh questions about credit card issuers’ mobile-payments strategies are likely to surface starting later this week as major card-issuing banks release their 2011 fourth-quarter earnings, beginning with JPMorgan Chase & Co. on Jan. 13.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. has quietly ceased filing lawsuits to collect consumer card and other debts around the nation, dismissing in-house attorneys and virtually shutting down a collections machine that as recently as nine months ago was racking up hundreds of millions of dollars in monthly judgments.

The use of barcode readers as a transaction and marketing tool¬–a mobile-commerce method popularized by early movers such as Starbucks Inc.¬–is getting a shot in the arm from a new American Express Co. partnership.

Intel Corp. is using an authentication system from SecureKey Technologies Inc. in its Ultrabook computers.

It appears it might take at least a few more painful payment-terminal tampering breaches like those Lucky Supermarkets and Michaels Stores Inc. experienced last year before U.S. merchants and card issuers take action to support EMV chip cards.

A 17-year-old McDonald’s employee on Jan. 9 was sentenced to 60 days in jail for skimming credit cards at the drive-thru window to steal more than $13,000 from cardholders. He also was ordered to pay $13,000 restitution.

The sluggish market for credit card portfolios may pick up this year, if card losses continue to abate and potential buyers stay on the path of rebuilding capital.

The number of companies caught in data breaches exposing consumers’ credit, debit and bank account numbers is growing, but the best way to make amends to customers is not yet clear.

Consumers have long memories when it comes to a loss of trust in a bank or card company from a data breach. The damage from a spate of high-profile consumer data breaches over the past year appeared to bruise trust in several major brands, including that of Citigroup Inc.

The Members Group and Co-op Financial Services have entered into a strategic partnership to create the largest payment-services provider for credit unions, the companies announced Jan. 5.

Visa Inc. says it plans to convert $1.6 billion of the shares that it holds on behalf of credit unions and banks to help fund a potential $4 billion settlement with merchants over a civil price-fixing suit.

Two polls suggest consumers might be planning to lean more on credit cards again after overindulging in card use before the recession. And though the economy remains relatively sluggish, fewer Americans seem worried about their personal debt.

QNB Ltd., formerly known as Qatar National Bank, has launched a promotional campaign to garner more holders of a credit card it cobrands with mobile operator Qtel Ltd., the card issuer announced Dec. 27.

Consumers are paying down their debts across an increasing number of loan categories, according to the American Bankers Association.

Young consumers are so turned off by the prospect of overdraft and debit card fees that some are turning their backs on financial institutions.