Economy

Zumogo, ProPay Inc.’s new social-media payment tool for mobile phones, leaves out vital information that ProPay says some competitors leave in.

First Data Corp. plans to support the Federal Reserve Board’s proposed new debit interchange rules with a two-tiered pricing structure for its Star PIN-debit network, and it expects slow but steady revenue growth ahead, company executives told analysts Feb. 2.

Their silence on the Federal Reserve Board’s proposal to regulate debit card interchange rates could be counterproductive for independent sales organizations and merchant acquirers, Holli Targan, president of the Electronic Transactions Association, told attendees at the Northeast Acquirers Association conference last week in West Dover, Vt.

Various terminal makers have come out with their own devices and services designed to support payment card acceptance using mobile phones. But one ISO has decided to do so on its own, and at least one observer says the company could succeed with the proper marketing.

I saw the future at the Northeast Acquirers Association conference in January and realized I had seen it before.

For nearly every sales force in nearly every industry, selling based on price can be a losing game; someone is always willing to sell for less.

Between earnings pressures, looming regulatory changes and new technologies flooding the marketplace, today’s market can be a tough place for sales agents.

First Data Corp.’s decision to consolidate its merchant and card-issuer processing operations could help the payments company trim costs and better seize opportunities stemming from pending debit card regulation, analysts said Jan. 13.

Compliance with Payment Card Industry data-security standards is a top concern among smaller merchants, but many remain unaware of the scope of their potential liability regarding data breaches and are unclear on specific requirements, new survey data released Jan. 12 suggest.

ISOs working with Global Payments Inc. will play a role in determining the effects of a proposed 12-cent cap on debit transactions imposed by the Federal Reserve Board on the Atlanta-based payments processor, Global Payments said last week during a conference call to discuss its fiscal second quarter results.

Visa Inc. says it plans to implement a dual interchange schedule for issuing banks and credit unions in the wake of debit interchange regulation.

Total System Services Inc., or TSYS, has moved quicker than it originally anticipated in acquiring First National Bank of Omaha’s stake in First National Merchant Solutions LLC.

United Bank Card Inc. is making its Harbortouch point-of-sale system available for free to merchants that continue to use the company to process their payment card transactions, the Hampton, N.J.-based ISO announced Jan. 3.

To some, Elizabeth Warren's concept of a consumer protection regulator is an innovation. To others, it's an abomination. Either way, it's here to stay, and banking regulation will never be the same.

Merchant acquirers might be breathing a sigh of relief following the Federal Reserve Board’s proposal to cap debit card interchange rates at 12 cents per transaction. But though the proposed rules would not directly affect them, issuer reaction might, observers say.