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SocialWise Inc. is launching a marketing campaign for its BillMyParents online payment system through social network sites in early August that could reach 4.6 million followers of Twitter, Facebook and Myspace, Jim Collas, Socialwise president and CEO, tells PaymentsSource.

ILoveVelvet, a New York-based payment-technology company, says its new Velvet Suite products can enable merchants to use Apple Inc.’s iPhone and iPad devices as retail point-of-sale terminals.

ACH Federal will provide Web-based and customized automated clearinghouse processing services for Manhattan Beach, Calif.-based Beach Business Bank, the Chattanooga, Tenn.-based electronic payments provider announced on Aug. 3.

Improved consumer and issuer confidence in India is helping revive the nation’s credit card market. Debit card use, however, continues to grow at a much faster pace, new data from India’s central bank show.

HSBC Finance Corp. has promoted Patrick “Pat” Burke to CEO of the company’s U.S. consumer finance division. Burke also serves as senior vide president and CEO of HSBC’s credit card and retail business. He succeeds Niall Booker, who was recently promoted to CEO of HSBC North America Holdings Inc.

USAA Federal Savings Bank is shifting mobile banking into high gear by offering auto loans through customers' phones.

Consumers Credit Union in Waukegan, Ill., has joined the list of financial services companies using Fiserv Inc.'s Acumen account processing software.

Shortages of key components cost Hypercom Corp. $6 million in second-quarter product revenue, despite strong demand for the company’s point-of-sale products and services, says Philippe Tartavull, Hypercom CEO and president, during an Aug. 4 conference call to discuss earnings with analysts.

Reductions in consumer card use in casinos is adversely affecting Global Cash Access Holdings Inc.’s financial performance, Scott Betts, the company’s president and CEO, informed analysts during an Aug. 4 conference call to discuss second-quarter earnings.

JPMorgan Chase & Co.’s Chase Card Services unit is revamping the advertising campaign for the Sapphire rewards credit card, which targets affluent consumers, a year after its launch (see story).

Supported by CardSmith LLC, New England Conservatory this week launched an upgraded multiapplication campus card program that makes the campus virtually cashless, the Doylestown, Pa.-based campus card service provider announced on Aug. 2.

Bank Islam Malaysia Bhd. and Universiti Teknologi Mara formed a strategic partnership in Malaysia to offer the Bank Islam-Alumni UiTM platinum MasterCard.

Turkish bank Akbank TAS is hoping to bring contactless mobile payments to its customers through a partnership agreement announced this week with Visa Europe.

Point-of-sale terminal maker Hypercom Corp. late on Aug. 4 reported revenues of $103.9 million for the second quarter ended June 30, down 1.6% from $105.6 million during the same period last year. However, the Scottsdale, Ariz.-based company reported a $1.26 million net loss, in part because of component shortages that affected revenue; it reported net income of $1.26 million during the same period last year.

New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo today announced an investigation into predatory health care lending where consumers - especially seniors and vulnerable patients - are being misled about financing terms, causing them to be pushed into debt.

State Farm Bank is the latest financial services company to offer a remote deposit capture service to its mobile customers.

Plastyc Inc. has revamped its mobile banking website for prepaid card customers.

Improving same-store sales and a stabilizing economy appear to be helping Heartland Payment Systems Inc. turn itself around financially.

Consumer confidence declined in July for the third consecutive month as pessimism about the economy rose, according to survey data Discover Financial Services released Aug. 4.

A new product designed to reduce the potential for card skimming will be available by early November, says Bellatrix Systems Inc., developer of the Card At Table Service.