Credit

Mississippi Attorney General Jim Hood released a statement last week warning consumers about a potential debt collection scam in Mississippi, according to ACA International, the association representing collection agencies and creditors.

The Federal Reserve's forthcoming regulations on debit interchange may settle a long-running debate over whether fraud costs and risks are high enough to justify banks' current fees.

Weiss & Lurie says it is examining the proposed sale of Hypercom Corp. to VeriFone Systems Inc. for legal issues. The New York-based firm says it is looking at “possible breaches of fiduciary duty and other violations of law by members of the board of directors of Hypercom.”

Chinese banks will replace magnetic stripe cards with smart cards by 2015, according to an official from China UnionPay.

Intrust Bank will use credit card processing, loyalty, merchant processing and other services from Fidelity National Information Services Inc., the Jacksonville, Fla., technology vendor said Wednesday.

VeriFone Systems Inc. is getting a marketing boost for its iPhone payment card reader through a new partnership with the Atlanta processor Elavon.

A federal district court in Chicago shut down an international robocall ring that allegedly conned consumers out of $995 each with false promises to reduce their credit card interest rates.

Through its acquisitions, VeriFone Systems Inc. soon could become the largest terminal maker in the world.

Citing fewer defaults and a reduction in overall outstanding receivables, Target Corp.’s credit card unit more than doubled its profit during the third quarter, the company announced Nov. 17.

Near Field Communication will outlast other mobile-payment technologies such as microSD cards and two-dimensional barcodes, observers contacted by PaymentsSource generally agree.

PayPal Inc.’s Oct. 26 announcement that its transactions would be integrated into VeriFone Systems Inc.’s mobile point-of-sale product after Jan. 1 is a clear sign PayPal wants to move beyond e-commerce transactions, observers say (see story).

Thirty-two Rhode Island government organizations will use payment-processing services from Point & Pay LLC integrated into Opal Data Technologies Inc. software, Point & Pay announced Nov. 16.

Mobile-payments provider Zong Inc. has entered the Philippines market through partnership agreements with mobile carriers Globe Telecom Ltd. and Smart Communications Ltd., the U.S.-based company announced Nov. 17.

With fewer borrowers delinquent on one or more accounts, U.S. consumers' credit risk level dropped in the third quarter ended Sept. 30 to a mark not seen since the first quarter of 2009, according to TransUnion's Credit Risk Index (CRI) released Wednesday.

VeriFone Systems Inc. and Hypercom Corp. have set aside their differences, announcing this morning an agreement in which VeriFone will acquire the competing point-of-sale terminal maker in an all-stock transaction valued at $485 million, including net debt VeriFone would assume.

Recent developments suggest 2011 will be the year that mobile payments take hold in the United States in a big way.

PayNearMe Inc. is launching a reusable payment card option for consumers who prefer to use cash to pay for online purchases, loan payments and utility bills, the Mountain View, Calif.-based company announced on Nov. 16.

The 200 million wireless subscribers connected to AT&T Inc., T-Mobile USA Inc. and Verizon Communications Inc. may not be enough for the companies’ mobile payments joint venture to succeed; it still needs to attract large banks and merchants, one analyst says.

Discover Financial Services is still struggling to reach “the last mile” of full U.S. merchant acceptance as many retail locations fall short in promoting the brand at the point of sale, Roger Hochschild, Discover president and chief operating officer, told analysts on Nov. 16.

First American Payment Systems LP has signed Lenoir, N.C.-based Parkway Bank as its 26th referral-bank partner, the Fort Worth, Texas-based independent sales organization announced Nov. 9.