Payment processing

Alex W. “Pete” Hart, a former chief executive of MasterCard Worldwide and currently chairman of SVB Financial Group, has been elected to the board of directors of mobile-imaging vendor Mitek Systems Inc., Mitek announced March 1.

From the time it launched in 2008, Acculynk Inc. has maintained its PaySecure product is secure despite detractors. The company today received some more validation, as a payments processor that fell victim to a high-profile security breach in late 2008 plans to support Acculynk’s Internet PIN-debit transactions.

Fiserv Inc. has purchased Mobile Commerce Ltd., a provider of mobile banking and payments technology, the Brookfield, Wis.-based banking-technology company announced March 1.

Approximately 57% of vending-machine operators plan to add or expand their use of cashless payments this year, while only 8% likely will not add payment card acceptance to their machines, new survey data suggest.

Demonstrating a way to make money on a service many banks view as a cost, Hearst Corp. on Feb. 28 launched a beta version of its bill presentment and payment site Manilla.com.

Oberthur Technologies of America Corp. is in talks with U.S. issuers planning to migrate their debit and credit card portfolios to EMV chip-and-PIN technology “over the next couple of quarters,” an executive for the card manufacturer tells PaymentsSource.

WASHINGTON — Just a month ago, most analysts dismissed the banking industry's chances of persuading Congress to delay, alter or repeal a Dodd-Frank provision limiting interchange fees on debit cards.

Prevailing wisdom suggests that prepaid cards are an alternative or, at best, a bridge to a bank account, not an overlapping product.

Citizens of Thiruvananthapuram in the Indian state of Kerala may pay their property taxes online under an initiative launched Feb. 22

Celcom Axiata Bhd. is teaming with Maybank Bhd. to enable Maybank’s subscribers to make immediate payments of their mobile bills, a spokesperson from the Malaysia-based mobile operator tells PaymentsSource.

Transaction Network Services Inc.’s enhanced payment gateway will enable merchants in the United Kingdom and Ireland to process various payment types through a single system while adding an additional layer of security to card-not-present purchases, the company reported on Feb. 23.

NetSpend Holdings Inc.'s fourth-quarter net income grew 79% from a year earlier, to $6.3 million, as customers loaded more money onto its prepaid debit cards and spent more frequently.

Fidelity National Information Services Inc. said it expects first-quarter earnings to be below analysts' estimates.

The company behind the eBillme online-payment system has announced a partnership with Discover Financial Services that furthers the alternative payments provider’s strategy of aligning itself with mainstream players.

The Central Bank of Kenya has established new regulations for the country’s mobile funds-transfer market designed to protect consumers and mitigate market risk, a spokesperson for the bank tells PaymentsSource.

Etisalat Group last week inked a strategic agreement to offer Western Union Co.’s Mobile Money Transfer service in the 18 countries where it the Dubai-based mobile operator operates.

In 2012, London will become the first city where domestic and international consumers may access an entire transportation network using open-loop, network-branded contactless credit or debit cards, the Transport for London announced Feb. 24.

News that another credit union is adopting EMV payment card technology to reduce cardholder hassles when traveling abroad adds ballast to the theory that some U.S. payment sectors won’t wait for a mandate to voluntarily embrace the chip-and-PIN method.

In a move some observers say might represent the future of loyalty and mobile payments, loyalty marketer Maritz Real-Time and smart card technology firm Vivotech Inc. have formed a strategic partnership to provide immediate retail promotions to customer mobile phones equipped with Near Field Communication technology.

Consumers in the United Kingdom, the United States and Canada soon may use their smartphone as a contactless payment device and mobile wallet using an application from Yespay International Ltd.