Payment processing

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.

Axis Bank Ltd. has launched a Visa-branded prepaid card in India designed for foreign tourists visiting the country, the issuer announced Feb. 21.

Turkish consumers using Visa-branded debit cards equipped with EMV chips will have the ability later this year to get cash back at the point of sale at retailers that offer the service, Visa Europe announced Feb. 23.

States already using prepaid debit cards to disburse unemployment benefits likely saw economic and practical reasons to make the switch from distributing checks. Connecticut is the latest state to have similar aspirations.

The Electronic Transactions Association’s payments professional certification program will debut by the end of the year, the trade group announced Feb. 22.

Though perhaps there is no greater rivalry than Thin Mints versus Samoas, two Girl Scout groups are taking sides in a different debate: which mobile card reader is best for cookie sales.

Square Inc.’s Feb. 22 announcement that it had dropped the 15-cent transaction fee for card-present transactions represents a return to a rate scheme the merchant-services company had last spring.

The Federal Reserve Board’s proposed new debit-interchange rates are unlikely to go into effect this summer without some significant changes, the co-chief of a large independent service organization speculates.

Fiserv Inc. plans to begin delivering electronic statements through bank and credit union websites for Discover Financial Services card accounts, the processor announced Feb. 22.

Security Card Services LLC’s decision to renew its processing contract with National Processing Co. stems partially from a degree of comfort the companies have amassed in their 14-year history of working together, according to John Lewis, the independent sales organization’s president.