Payments

Travelex Group, a London-based distributor of foreign-currency reloadable prepaid cards that offer consumers a locked in foreign-exchange rate, has added a text-message alert service to notify cardholders when account funds drop below 100 pounds (US$149 or 117 euros).

The Reserve Bank of India says Yes Bank Ltd. may proceed with plans to provide a mobile-phone based payment and funds-transfer service in association with handset-maker Nokia Corp., a spokesperson from the central bank confirms to PaymentsSource. The service enables bill payments and funds transfers for Yes Bank customers using Nokia handsets.

PURCHASE, N.Y. – In an announcement expected to fuel the ongoing debate in Congress on interchange fees, MasterCard reported a 24% surge in first quarter profits yesterday.

With merchants and card companies pushing people to abandon paper statements, financial companies are using electronic billing services to keep customers from abandoning their online bill payment sites as well.

Apple Inc. could be in the hunt to acquire Vivotech Inc., a Santa Clara, Calif.-based company specializing in contactless payments, Bloomberg News reported today.

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla.-Good and bad, the recession has handed down lessons to CEOs about managing the credit card portfolio.

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo.-While CUs were gaining credit card market share, some needed to pay closer attention to portfolio management.

ATLANTA-Christopher Danvers acknowledged that the recession and the combined regulatory pressure won't permit CUs to run their credit card portfolios as they did "in the good times."

DEARBORN, Mich.-Mark Shobe said he learned that the unexpected collapse of the economy reinforced his thinking that you can never be too prepared.

WASHINGTON, D.C.-Keep your eyes open to what's happening in the world. A simple, yet effective strategy that Evan Clark quickly learned helps avoid losses.

DES MOINES, Iowa-Jeff Russell has always believed that market share can be gained during a down economy, and the current recession hasn't changed his thinking.

MILWAUKEE-Get ready for more debit demand-and competition. That's the outlook of credit union CEOs, major CU card issuers, and industry analysts who see the recession accelerating consumers' and financials' shift to debit.

WASHINGTON-New legislation that would open the market for credit and debit card interchange fees to competition would harm small card issuers like credit unions and community banks, members of Congress were told last week during a hearing on a new interchange bill.

SAN FRANCISCO – Card giant Visa Inc. reported a 33% surge in second quarter earnings yesterday to $713 million, fueled by higher-than-expected growth in transaction volume.

WASHINGTON – New legislation that would open the market for credit and debit card interchange fees to competition would harm small card issuers such as credit unions and community banks, members of Congress were told yesterday during a hearing on a new interchange bill.

Portfolio Recovery Associates Inc., a Norfolk, Va. debt buyer, reported a quarterly profit above Wall Street expectations as cash collections rose 33%. The company attributed the gain to a shift in its collection mix to bankrupt accounts, and seasonal strength in the quarter.

Square Inc. has finally shared some of the details about its mobile card acceptance system, but payments executives still feel as if they haven't heard the whole story.

Toronto-Dominion Bank's mobile banking application has been downloaded more than 100,000 times in the first 10 days since its release.

Benefiting from an overall improved global economy, American Express Co. reported a 102.5% increase in net income for the first quarter ended March 31, more than double what it earned a year earlier.

Apple Inc. has the power to make mobile payments huge, but not quite in the way bankers hope.