Credit

Japanese conglomerate Mitsui & Co. Ltd. has acquired 14.9% stake in Qiwi Ltd., a Russian company registered in Cyprus that specializes in instant-payment kiosks, the two companies announced Jan. 18. Terms were not disclosed.

SoftBank Mobile Corp. will start a Near Field Communication payment pilot with smartphones powered by Android 2.2 operating system late this quarter, the Tokyo-based subsidiary of Japanese telecommunication operator SoftBank Corp. announced Jan.18.

Neovia Financial PLC’s $50 million acquisition of Montreal-based Optimal Payments will provide Neovia with a “meaningful” presence in North America, the United Kingdom-based merchant processor announced Jan. 20.

First Data Corp. will handle credit card processing for Kohl’s Corp.’s private-label credit cards in a multiyear agreement the two companies announced Jan. 20.

Citing the effects of fewer losses and healthy growth in new accounts and purchase volume, Capital One Financial Corp.’s credit card unit earned $586 million during the fourth quarter ended Dec. 31, up 14.9% from $510 million a year earlier. Revenues were down 13.8%, however, to $2.5 billion from $2.9 billion, driven by a full quarter of lower late fees resulting from implementation of the CARD Act, Cap One reported Jan 20.

Citing reductions in charge-offs and a rise in interchange revenue, Bank of America Corp.’s Global Card Services unit earned net income of $1.5 billion for the fourth quarter ended Dec. 30; it reported a $994 million loss during the same period last year, BofA reported on Jan. 21

Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey has filed suit against a local college professor over the patent rights to Square, a credit card reader that can be attached to smartphones.

EBay Inc.’s PayPal Inc. unit in 2010 nearly tripled its eBay Mobile gross merchandise volume to $2 billion from the previous year, driven by strong holiday shopping, John Donahoe, eBay president and CEO, told analysts Jan. 19 during a conference call to discuss fourth-quarter earnings.

The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas, the Philippines central bank, has issued new regulations designed to further protect the country’s credit cardholders from abuse.

At first glance Xipwire Inc.'s mobile payments system seems obsolete next to competing services — its software isn't based on a sleek-looking digital wallet application on a smartphone and it doesn't rely on payment chips that turn mobile devices into tap-and-go credit cards.

Hypercom Corp. has signed a deal with a German retail chain that will deploy 30,000 of its Artema Hybrid point-of-sale terminals over the next 30 months, the terminal maker announced Jan. 19.

Hypercom Corp. has signed a deal with a German retail chain that will deploy 30,000 of its Artema Hybrid point-of-sale terminals over the next 30 months, the terminal maker announced Jan. 19.

EBay Inc.’s payment unit, which includes PayPal Inc. and Bill Me Later, experienced a strong fourth quarter, eBay reported this afternoon.

The Indian capital city of New Delhi is testing a new, automated parking-management system that will accept payment cards from motorists either onsite or online, an official from the Unified Traffic and Transportation Infrastructure Centre tells PaymentsSource.

Manila’s two suburban rail networks are conducting a trial in the Philippines to test the use of a common contactless smart card for their commuters.

Tanzania Posts Corp. and Vodacom Tanzania Ltd. have inked a mobile-banking agreement in which Vodacom will use the postal service’s network of branches as agents to support its M-Pesa funds-transfer service.

Within the United States, Ingenico S.A. already may be benefiting from the proposed merger between VeriFone Systems Inc. and Hypercom Corp., rival point-of-sale terminal makers.

Wells Fargo & Co.’s credit card portfolio shrank somewhat in 2010 as charge-offs declined sharply, the San Francisco-based company said Jan. 19 when announcing fourth-quarter earnings.

U.S. Bancorp had expected to wait to see how other financial institutions reacted to recent legislative and policy changes that have or will affect revenue before deciding on the course of action it takes.

Merchant processor Chase Paymentech LLC’s new Safetech Fraud and Security Solutions suite of services will rely on VeriFone Systems Inc.’s VeriShield Protect product for advanced encryption services, VeriFone announced Jan. 19.