Today’s Briefs: August

By PYMNTS | July 31, 2013

Briefs from August 23, 2013

Uber Rakes In $360M In Latest Funding
San Francisco-based mobile taxi app provider Uber has raised $361 million as part of its latest private equity round, VentureBeat reported on August 22.

Fraudsters Use DDoS Attacks To Mask Wire Transfer Theft
Cybercriminals are now targeting the wire payment switch at several U.S. banks to steal millions of dollars from customer accounts, SC Magazine reported on August 21.

Foursquare Ups Data Collection With New Feature
Location-based social network Foursquare announced a new feature on August 21 aimed at collecting more business data from users, TechCrunch reported.

Report: 41% Of Fraud Victims Never Repaid
Kaspersky Lab and B2B International released a new report on August 21 that revealed that 41 percent of online fraud victims are never reimbursed for their losses.

Boxed Launches Mobile Wholesale Goods Service
Boxed, a startup founded by former Zynga execs, has raised $1.1 million to bring wholesale shopping to mobile phones, TechCrunch reported on August 22.

Alibaba Founder Joins UCWeb Board
UCWeb, the maker of UC Browser, the top mobile browser in India, has added Alibaba founder and former CEO Jack Ma to its board of directors, TechCrunch reported on August 21.

Lowe’s Mobile App Adds In-Store Features
North Carolina-based home improvement giant Lowe’s has upgraded its iPhone app with new features that promote in-store shopping, Mobile Commerce Daily reported on August 22.

Harris Teeter To Test Paydiant mWallet
Massachusetts-based mobile wallet provider Paydiant has announced a new agreement with Harris Teeter, a grocery store chain with more than 200 locations in eight states, a press release for the company revealed on August 22.

Moven, Payveris Team For Better Bill Payments
Payveris has announced that it will provide bill payment services to Moven, a mobile money management service that offers users feedback on transactions and spending patterns, a press release revealed on August 22.

Vodafone To Launch M-Pesa In Egypt, Romania By End Of 2013
Mobile telecommunications company Vodafone announced plans to roll out mobile money service M-Pesa in Egypt and Romania, reported Business Standard.

PayPal Here Arrives In The UK
PayPal Here, the Chip & PIN solution for SMB merchants, has arrived in the UK, reported Finextra. PayPal Here aims to help businesses that previously relied on cash and check payments in the UK.

Bank Of Israel Mandates 3.5 Year Deadline To Make EMV Switch
David Zaken, the supervisor of bank institutions in Israel, recently stated that the country’s banks and credit card companies must migrate to EMV card security solutions, reported Israel’s Business Arena.

PAYMILL Launches MOBILE SDK For Mobile Payments
PAYMILL, a payments service company, announced the launch of PAYMILL Mobile SDK for iOS and Android users, reported Finextra.

United Arab Bank Rolls Out Mobile Banking App
According to Trade Arabia, United Arab Bank, one of the largest banks in the U.A.E., recently launched its free mobile banking app for customers.

Briefs from August 22, 2013

Fed To Appeal Swipe Fee Ruling
The U.S. Federal Reserve announced that it will appeal U.S. District Judge Richard Leon’s decision that its rules for debit card transaction fees were illegal during a court hearing on Wednesday, Bloomberg reported on August 21.

JustFab, ShoeDazzle Merge To Form Subscription Giant
Los Angeles-based subscription fashion service JustFab has merged with fellow L.A.-headquartered personalized styling service ShoeDazzle to form “the worldwide market leader in fashion subscription eCommerce,” a press release revealed on August 21.

PayPal To Integrate With MICROS POS
PayPal and Maryland-based hospitality and retail point-of-sale (POS) provider MICROS inked a new partnership on August 20, a press release revealed.

Buttercoin Raises $1M To Reinvent Remittances Via Bitcoin
Buttercoin, a bitcoin trading engine looking to further the currency’s use in the remittance market has raised $1 million in seed funding, TechCrunch reported on August 20.

Google Helpouts Homepage Is Now Live
The homepage for Google Helpouts, Google’s video-based eCommerce marketplace, is now live, TechCrunch reported on August 20.

Report: 46% Of Back-To-School Shoppers Use Mobile
A new study from Pricegrabber has discovered that nearly half of all back-to-school shoppers – 46 percent – will seek assistance from their mobile devices, Mobile Commerce Daily reported on August 21.

UnitedHealthcare Announces Online Billing
UnitedHealthcare, a division of the largest U.S. single health carrier UnitedHealth Group, has unveiled a new online bill payment service, The Paypers reported on August 21.

Bottomline Tech Sees Net Income Of $11.7M In Q4
Bottomline Technologies (NASDAQ: EPAY), a leading provider of cloud-based payment, invoice and banking solutions, today reported financial results for the fourth quarter and fiscal year ended June 30, 2013.

USAT Rolls Out Loyalty And Prepaid Platform To All Cashless Locations
USA Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ: USAT), (“USAT”), a leader of wireless, cashless payment and M2M telemetry solutions for small-ticket, self-serve retailing industries, today announced details of its ePort Connect® loyalty and prepaid program, called MORE.

Total Payment Cards Circulation Jumps 12% In 2012
New data from RBR has revealed that the total number of payment cards in circulation rose by 12 percent in 2012 to 10 million, a release from the company indicated.

MasterCard Develops Chip Tech, Local Apps For Nigerian ID Card
MasterCard announced it is working on developing chip technology for the Nigerian national ID card program, reported HumanIPO.

Isarel’s Bank Leumi Develops Financial Innovation Hub
Bank Leumi of Israel announced its new partnership with investment vehicle, Elevator, to introduce a financial technology innovation hub, reported Finextra.

Identive Provides Cashless Payments For Berlin Stadium
Identive Group, an identification, security and RFID industries company, announced it has been awarded with a contract to manage cashless payment services at the second largest football stadium in Berlin, Germany, reported the Wall Street Journal.

Poland’s Getin Bank Upgrades High-Tech Payment Card
Getin Bank of Poland is honoring the popularity of its MasterCard debit card with new features for the LCD display screen and has revealed new plans for personalized offers and more, reported Finextra.

payleven, BIXOLON Offer Printer System Bundle
Payleven, one of the largest mobile card payments firms present in Europe, announced an introductory bundle offer with BIXOLON, a printer system manufacturer for merchants.

Briefs from August 21, 2013

PayPal Expands In-Store POS Presence Through Mercury Network
Mercury Payment Systems, one of America’s fastest growing payment solutions providers, today announced a collaboration with PayPal to enable Mercury’s vast network of point-of-sale software developers and value-added resellers, and rapidly growing base of 80,000 merchants to offer PayPal in-store.

Kabbage To Underwrite Stripe Customers
Atlanta-based SMB financing provider Kabbage announced a new partnership with San Francisco-based online payment processor Stripe on August 20, a press release for the company revealed.

Google Glass Gets First Price Comparison App
Google Glass developer Lance Nanek has introduced the device’s first price-comparison app, Crystal Shopper, VentureBeat reported on August 19.

Powa Raises $76M In Series A
London-based mobile payments startup Powa has revealed that it raised $76 million as part of its Series A funding round, VentureBeat reported on August 20.

DHS Releases Mt. Gox Seizure Details
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has revealed that it seized accounts worth roughly $2.9 million from Japan-based bitcoin exchange Mt. Gox in May, Finextra reported on August 20.

Website Outage Costs Amazon $5 Million
Amazon’s website went offline for anywhere between 15 and 45 minutes at 4 p.m. EST on August 19 due to unknown causes, VentureBeat reported.

PriceGrabber Buys Fashion App Snapette
http://www.pymnts.com/briefing-room/mobile/mobile-shopping/2013/pricegrabber-buys-fashion-app-snapette/?utm_source=August+21%2C+2013&utm_campaign=August+21+NL&utm_medium=email

Macy’s Incentivizes Charitable Giving With Rewards
Ohio-headquartered retail chain Macy’s has announced it is offering 25 percent discounts to customers who donate $5 to charity using their mobile phones, Mobile Commerce Daily reported.

Ninety Percent Of KFC App Testers Place Mobile Orders
Popular fast food chain KFC is seeing success from a soon-to-be-launched mobile solution, Mobile Commerce Daily reported on August 20.

ROAM mPOS Achieves Visa Ready Certification
ROAM, an Ingenico company and the leading mobile commerce platform provider, announced today that its RP350x Chip & Sign Mobile Card Reader is among the first to be certified as Visa Ready.

Study: UK Has Lost 40% Of Bank And Building Society Branches Since 1989
According to Finextra, the number of banks and building societies in the UK has decreased by 40 percent since 1989.

MPayMe Introduces ZNAP Mobile Business App
MPayMe, a global business technology company, has announced the launch of its mobile business platform, called ZNAP, reported Finextra.

CVC Capital Partners Buys Skrill Group For Fourth European Takeover
CVC Capital Partners announced its agreement to buy online payment company Skrill in the UK for €600 million, including debt, reported The Financial Times.

ECB, Airtel Kenya Partner To Integrate Mobile Wallet
Kenya’s Equatorial Commercial Bank (ECB) announced a new partnership with Airtel Kenya that will integrate new mobile platform technology for its customers, reported All Africa.

Ghana Banks Introduce New Cash Limitation Policy
The President of the Ghana Association of Bankers (GAB), Asare Akuffo, announced new measures that will limit third party cash withdrawals to GH10,000, reported All Africa.

Briefs from August 20, 2013

Groupon Launches Affiliate Marketing In 30+ Countries
Groupon (NASDAQ: GRPN) today announced the launch of the Groupon Partner Network, the first proprietary local e-commerce affiliate marketing platform designed to help online publishers better monetize their online presence through the promotion of Groupon deals.

Walmart eCommerce Surges 30% In First Half Of 2013
Arkansas-based global retail giant Walmart revealed its eCommerce sales rose by 30 percent over the first half of 2013, Internet Retailer reported.

Microsoft Drops Native Barcode Scanning Technology
Scanbuy, Inc., the leading mobile engagement solutions provider, has been chosen by Microsoft as a licensee of the software giant’s mobile barcode technology, Microsoft Tag.

GoDaddy Buys SMB Discovery Platform Locu
Arizona-based web domain and eCommerce solution provider GoDaddy has acquired San Francisco-based local business discovery engine Locu, All Things D reported on August 19.

Store Locator Drives Dunkin’ Donuts Payments
Dunkin’ Donuts, the popular Massachusetts-based coffeehouse, has revealed that its store locator feature has been key to the success of its app and payments initiatives, Mobile Commerce Daily reported on August 19.

TaskRabbit Enters Five New Markets
San Francisco-based online and mobile marketplace TaskRabbit has launched services in five new cities, TechCrunch reported on August 19.

3D-Printed ATM Skimmers Help Crooks Steal $100K
Fraudsters are now using 3-D printers to create custom bankcard skimming devices, VentureBeat reported on August 18.

PNC Bank Joins “Pop-Up Branch” Bandwagon
Pennsylvania-based banking services provider PNC Bank has opened its first pop-up branch in Atlanta, Bank Credit News reported on August 19.

Visa Europe: UK Contactless Spending Hits £45.2 Million In June
Contactless spending in the UK increased five fold to hit £45.2 million in June 2013, according to a Visa Europe report.

Danish POS Startup Wallmob Nabs $1.2 Million
Danish-based point of sale (POS) provider Wallmob revealed that it has raised $1.2 million in seed funding on August 19, TechCrunch reported. The funds will assist Wallmob as it eyes international expansion.

TSYS, FICO Launch Fraud Management Solution
TSYS (NYSE: TSS), a leading global payments solution provider, and FICO® (NYSE: FICO), a leading analytics software company, have announced the integration of FICO’s latest version of its fraud management solution, FICO® Falcon® Fraud Manager 6 with TSYS’ licensed PRIME card and merchant management solution.

PAY.ON, P4 Solutions Partner For SEPA Direct-Debit Processing
Web-based multichannel payments infrastructure provider PAY.ON has integrated with P4 Solutions’ SEPA direct-debit payment processing, according to Finextra.

Briefs from August 19, 2013

Apple Plots NFC Gifting System
The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office has published a patent application filed by Apple for technology that allows iOS device users to exchange media via NFC, NFC World reported on August 16.

Report: Amazon Competitor ShopRunner Gets Backing From Alibab
Chinese eCommerce giant Alibaba Group Holding has agreed to a major investment in eCommerce site and Amazon competitor ShopRunner, according to The Wall Street Journal.

Walmart Debuts Amazon-Like Device Buyback Gift Card Program
Major U.S. retail giant Walmart unveiled “Gadgets to Gift Cards” on August 15, a new program that asks customers to provide the company with used smartphones and tablets in exchange for gift cards, CNET reported.

Coinbase Integrates SMS Commands
San Francisco-based bitcoin wallet provider Coinbase has added SMS commands to its wallet and purchasing systems, TechCrunch reported on August 15.

Restorando Reaps $13.3M For Reservations
Restorando, the Argentina-based online reservation startup seeking to become the OpenTable of Latin America, announced $13.3 million in new funding on August 16, TechCrunch reported.

Pre-Orders Begin For Bitcoin ATM
Lamassu Bitcoin Ventures has revealed that it is now accepting pre-orders for its Bitcoin ATM, TechCrunch reported on August 16.

MasterCard Adds Aruba To Priceless Cities List
In order to provide MasterCard cardholders with priceless experiences in the world’s most exciting destinations, MasterCard is launching Priceless Aruba, in partnership with the Ministry of Tourism and the Tourism Authority of Aruba.

Report: IBM Acquires Trusteer For $1B
IBM has acquired Israeli security company Trusteer for $800 million-$1 billion, according to TechCrunch.

Birchbox Subscriptions Generate eCommerce Success
Discovery commerce platform Birchbox has released new data that suggests its subscription commerce model is winning customers, TechCrunch reported on August 15.

Sage Pay Rolls Out Omnichannel Integration Solution
European payment processor Sage Pay announced on August 16 that its launching a new solution aimed at improving omnichannel payment integration for retailers.

Study: 7 Million UK Adults Have Never Used The Internet
According to a new study from the Office for National Statistics, 7.1 million adults in the UK have never used the Internet.

Orange, O2 Team With Tatra Bank For NFC Payments In Slovakia
Telecommunications companies Orange and O2 have teamed up with Tatra Bank to allow users to make NFC payments in Slovakia.

Briefs from August 16, 2013

Square Co-Founder Starts Fintech Accelerator
Jim McKelvey, co-founder of San Francisco-based mobile point of sale (mPOS) giant Square, has launched a financial services tech accelerator, Finextra reported on August 14.

Advantech Buys Majority Stake In AdvanPOS
Taiwan-based intelligent system developer Advantech announced that it will acquire a more than a 70 percent stake in point-of-sale (POS) manufacturer AdvanPOS Technology, DIGITIMES reported on August 15.

AmEx Ventures Backs Mobile Rewards Startup Kiip
American Express Ventures has made a strategic investment in San Francisco-based mobile rewards startup Kiip, TechCrunch reported on August 15.

NYC Unveils VeriFone-Powered Taxi Mobile App Way2ride
VeriFone Systems, Inc. (NYSE: PAY) today announced, Way2ride, a mobile app that allows New York City taxi passengers to get in, tap, and get out the moment their ride is over.

Rue La La: Multiscreen Shoppers Are More Valuable
Gerry McGoldrick, president of marketing for Boston-based flash sales giant Rue La La, indicated that he believes multiscreen shoppers are six times more valuable than single-screen shoppers, Mobile Commerce Daily reported.

Zipmark Adds $1.5 Million To Seed Funding
New York-based digital check payment platform Zipmark announced $1.5 million in new funding on August 15, a press release from the company stated.

PCI Council Previews Upcoming PCI DSS, PA-DSS Changes
Today the PCI Security Standards Council (PCI SSC), an open, global forum for the development of payment card security standards published PCI Data Security Standard (PCI DSS) and Payment Application Data Security Standard (PA-DSS) 3.0 Change Highlights as a preview of the new version of the standards coming in November 2013.

1800Flowers Tests Mobile Fingerprinting
New York-based same-day flower delivery service 1800Flowers revealed that it is using fingerprinting technology to track customer behavior at eTail East on Thursday, Mobile Commerce Daily reported.

Stripe Launches In The UK
Stripe, an online and mobile payments startup, announced it has launched into the UK market, reported The Drum.

Four More Payday Lenders Shut Down
UK Payday Lenders are dropping like flies, as The Telegraph reported another four firms have exited the market.

Two-Thirds Of Belgian eCommerce Sites Have Vioations
According to eCommerce Facts, the Belgian federal supervisory authority reviewed 450 eCommerce websites in Belgium, and discovered that two-thirds were not adhering to the law.

Report: 70% Of German Consumers Use Comparison Portals
A recent survey conducted by Gfk for comparison shopping site, Check24.de, reported that more than 70 percent of German consumers use comparison websites when shopping for products or services, reported eCommerce Facts.

Viva Launches First Drive-Through ATM In Kuwait
Viva, a telecom operator based in Kuwait, announced its first installation of a drive-through ATM service in Kuwait, reported ATM Marketplace.

Zambian Startup Zoona Brings mPayments To Unbanked
Zambian startup, Zoona, is among to help bring the country to a cashless system by offering a mobile money solution targeted for both merchants and consumers, reported VentureBurn.

Briefs from August 15, 2013

Seamless To Integrate With Windows Phone Wallet
Seamless announced that its mobile payment solution, SEQR, is set to launch for Windows 8 and the Windows Phone, and will soon be integrated with the Windows Phone Wallet.

Shopbop Strives To Increase eCommerce Sales In Russia With New Site
Shopbop, the Amazon-owned female fashion retailer, announced the launch of its new Russian language site, reported eCommerce Facts.

NCR Modernizes German ATM Network
NCR Corporation (NCR), a global consumer transaction technology firm, announced it is adding new features and services to Sparkasse KolnBonn’s ATMs, reported the Wall Street Journal.

Colossus Bets Selects WorldPay To Process Payments
WorldPay, a global payments processing company, announced it has been selected by the online sports betting website, Colossus Bets, to provide an end-to-end payments solution, reported Finextra.

B+S Card Service Rolls Out Payment Terminals To UK Merchants
B+S Card Service announced the roll out of its payment terminals to merchants in the UK. The service, called PCI PTS 3.0 compliant VX820 DUEt and VX680, aims to improve efficiency and reliability for merchants processing ePayments.

Report: Judge Leon Hints At Swipe Fee Reimbursement
U.S. District Court Judge Richard Leon suggested in a hearing yesterday that banks and credit card companies may need to reimburse retailers for debit card fees that he previously ruled to be too high, the Wall Street Journal reports.

Braintree Challenges PayPal With Marketplace Debut
Braintree has launched its Marketplace API designed to “streamline payments for market-style businesses,” according to Braintree’s website.

Square Fined $500K In Florida
The Florida Office of Financial Regulation announced on August 15 that it fined mobile point-of-sale (mPOS) giant Square $507,000 in July for previously operating in the state without a money transmitter license, Finextra reported.

AvantCredit Grabs $20M To Use Big Data To Assess Loans
Online lender AvantCredit has raised $20 million in a second round of funding to back its loan-assessing platform, according to VentureBeat.

Gartner: Smartphones Surpass Feature Phones In Global Sales
Smartphone sales surpassed feature phone sales globally for the first time in Q2 2013, according to a report by Gartner.

Bitcoin Wallets Get Upgrade After Security Scare
Several Android bitcoin wallet applications have been upgraded after a report broke this weekend describing a critical security flaw in Android-based apps, according to PC World.

CSI Enhances globalVCard Paysystems Platform
Florida-based financial solutions innovator CSI Enterprises has announced enhancements to its globalVCard paysystems accounts payable solution.

Amazon Web Services Intros SNS Mobile Push
Amazon Web Service has introduced a new cloud-based notification platform, Amazon Simple Notification Service (SNS) with Mobile Push, according to The Paypers.

SecureNet Payment Systems Rolls Out Mobile PayOS
SecureNet Payment Systems today announced the launch of Mobile PayOS, the latest in mobile payment technology empowering merchants of all sizes to turn any iOS mobile device into a secure mobile payment solution.

Briefs from August 14, 2013

Chase Adds Credit Card Offerings To Isis
Chase announced that it will support the national rollout of the Isis Mobile Wallet later this year by adding its credit card offerings to the platform, the company said via press release on Monday.

Fidelity Tests Google Glass App
Global financial services provider Fidelity Investments announced it is taking part in Google’s developer program for Google Glass, Finextra reported on August 13.

MasterCard Debuts Multi-Currency Travel Card
MasterCard, Travelex and Access Prepaid have teamed up to introduce a new spending tool for international travelers that can store multiple currencies on the same card, a press release revealed on August 13.

Chase Debuts New SMB mPOS Solution
Chase Paymentech, a leading global merchant acquirer, payment processor and subsidiary of JPMorgan Chase & Co., today announced the launch of “Chase Checkout” – solutions to help merchants seamlessly accept payments however they do business: in store, online or on the go.

Facebook Mobile Integrates With OpenTable
Facebook has announced that its mobile app is now integrated with restaurant reservation specialist OpenTable, All Things D reported on August 12.

Daily Deals Giant Gilt Names Former Citi Exec COO
New York-based online daily deals giant Gilt has appointed Tracey Weber as its new chief operating officer (COO), Reuters reported on August 13.

Harland Financial Bolsters Its AML Protection
Harland Financial Solutions announced today that it has entered into a strategic alliance with Verafin, Inc., a leading provider of fraud detection and anti-money laundering software across North America.

StyleSeek Seed Funding Nears $2M
StyleSeek, the Chicago-based fashion discovery site founded by two MIT graduates, has raised $750,000 in new capital as part of its seed funding, TechCrunch reported on August 13.

UAE Lifts Loan Transfer Ban For Nationals
The central bank of the United Arab Emirates has conditionally lifted a ban on transfers between banks of personal loans to local citizens, according to CPI Financial.

MasterCard Names New VP For Sub-Saharan Africa Region
MasterCard has named Ezediashi Ofili its new Global Products & Solutions Vice President, sub-Saharan Africa, the company announced on August 13.

Report: Azerbaijani eCommerce Jumps 1.7 Percent
The eCommerce sector in Azerbaijan has grown 1.7 percent on a yearly basis for the January-July 2013 period, according to data from the Azerbaijan’s State Statistical Committee.

Ukranian Processing Center Selects FASTest ePayments Testing Hub
Ukrainian Processing Center (UPC), the leading provider of ePayment processing and outsourcing in the Ukraine, recently chose Web FASTest from Paragon Application Systems, for their ePayment testing platform.

MasterCard Debuts Multi-Currency Travel Card
MasterCard and Access Prepaid have teamed up to introduce a new spending tool for international travelers that can store multiple currencies on the same card, a press release revealed on August 13.

Briefs from August 13, 2013

Shopify Subverts Stripe, PayPal With Shopify Payments
eCommerce platform Shopify unveiled Shopify Payments on August 12, a new service that allows merchants to accept payments without soliciting a third-party processor such as Stripe or PayPal, TechCrunch reported.

PerkStreet Financial To Cease Operations
Boston-based banking platform provider PerkStreet Financial has announced that it will close down next month due to a lack of funding, The New York Times reported on August 12.

Groupon Enters Social Gifting Vertical
Groupon has acquired San Francisco-based social gifting startup Plumfare, VentureBeat reported on August 12.

Regulation Causing Hackers To Abandon Bitcoin
Massachusetts-based IT storage provider EMC Corp indicates that online fraudsters and criminals are abandoning bitcoin for illegal use, Reuters reported on August 9.

PayPal Strengthens PayPal Here With Business Intelligence
PayPal has announced a new partnership with Shopventory that will bring business intelligence and inventory management features to its mobile payment product, PayPal Here, beginning in the fall, Mobile Commerce Daily reported.

Western Union: 36% Of Consumers Use Three Channels To Pay Bills
The Western Union Company (NYSE:WU), a leader in global payment services, released the latest findings from the Western Union® Bill Payments Money Mindset Index.

Google Play Revenue Grows By 67 Percent
Netherlands-based app market analyst Distimo has revealed that Google’s Android app marketplace, Google Play, has grown by 67 percent over the past six months, TechCrunch reported on August 12.

NYC’s For-Hire Vehicles Get VeriFone Payment System
VeriFone Systems, Inc. (NYSE: PAY) today announced that the company is the first to begin installing payment systems for the new class of for-hire vehicles (FHVs) established to increase service to upper Manhattan and the New York City outer boroughs.

Report: Tablet Owners Love Retail Content
A new Millennial Media report has revealed that 47 percent of all tablet owners visit retail mobile applications and sites and view retail content, Mobile Commerce Daily reported on August 12.

MasterCard Names New Head Of Merchant Marketing For APMEA Region
MasterCard announced it has appointment Marcus Mak to take over as head of merchant marketing for the Asia/Pacific, Middle East and Africa regions.

TSYS Supports EMV Push In Kenya
TSYS® (NYSE: TSS) announced today that it supports Paynet, one of Kenya’s leading financial services providers to issuers and acquirers, in its ‘Great Migration to EMV Chip Card’ campaign.

Actis Acquires Paycorp Of South Africa For $95 Million
Actis, the global private equity firm, announced that, together with management, it has acquired Paycorp, an independent payments company in South Africa for $95 million from Transaction Capital.

Barclays Updates Pingit App With Charity Donations Service
Barclays announced a new feature for its mobile payments application, Pingit, to help serve charity donations, reported Mobile Commerce News.

Briefs from August 12, 2013

Samsung Wallet Hits Google Play Store
Samsung’s mobile wallet application is now available for purchase on Google Play, Engadget reported on August 9.

Report: Android Bitcoin Wallet Apps Vulnerable To Theft
Bitcoin developers have announced that bitcoin wallet apps that run on Android are susceptible to theft, according to The Verge.

Google’s One Today Donation App Exits Beta
Google launched its “One Today” Android app for charity donations on August 9, according to VentureBeat.

Global Axcess Files For Bankruptcy, To Sell ATM Business To FCTI
Florida-based ATM network operator Global Axcess Corp. has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy with the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Nevada, ATM Marketplace reported on August 9.

CFPB Alters Remittance Rules
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) released an update of its small business guide for electronic money transfers rule in an August 8 blog post.

NY DFS Hits Bitcoin Companies With Subpoenas
New York’s Department of Financial Services (DFS) has issued dozens of subpoenas to companies associated with bitcoin, sources told The Wall Street Journal on August 12.

Intuit Buys Competitor GoodApril
GoodApril’s Tax CheckUp solution allowed users to see their potential tax liability for the year ahead, a feature not offered by Intuit’s popular TurboTax software.

Google Maps Now Displaying Local Ads
Google updated its Maps app on August 8 to allow Google AdWords customers to target users with local ads after they’ve conducted a search, TechCrunch reported.

Airtel Debuts Mobile Electricity Payment Service In India

Airtel, an India-based provider of mobile prepaid and postpaid products, has launched a new mobile payment service that allows customers of the North Bihar Power Distribution Company to pay their electricity bills, The Paypers reported on August 9.

ATM Cash Withdrawals Drop In South Africa
According to ATM Marketplace, ATM withdrawals in South Africa dropped in July.

WorldPay’s eCommerce Division Grows 45 Percent
The eCommerce division of global payments processer WorldPay announced its volume transactions have grown 45 percent since 2012.

Dubai Chamber Of Commerce Launches Online Business Community
The Dubai Chamber of Commerce announced the launch of a new online business platform to help the Emirate develop into a business destination and build its global network, reported Arabian Gazette.

National Bank Of Kuwait Launches Augmented Reality Tech
The National Bank of Kuwait announced the launch of an augmented reality campaign facilitated by mobile marketing firm Snipp Interactive, reported Mobile Commerce News.

Pope Announces New Measures To Fight Money Laundering In Vatican
Pope Francis has made an announcement addressing new approaches for combatting money laundering, reported Rome Reports.

Briefs from August 9, 2013

Report: Justice Department Targets Payday Loan Processors
The Justice Department is targeting banks and other companies that process payments for payday lenders and “questionable financial ventures,” according to The Wall Street Journal.

Google Wallet Cuts Gift And Loyalty Card Support
Google Wallet has sent users who have added gift or loyalty cards to their NFC phones a notice saying it plans to end support for the features in two weeks, NFC World reported on August 9.

Isis Adds AmEx Serve To Digital Wallet
American Express and Isis® announced today that they will introduce American Express Serve to the Isis Mobile Wallet™.

PayPal: FIs Get 60% Boost From Geofencing
PayPal Media Network has released a new report that found that financial services saw a 60 percent higher click-thru rate on mobile advertisements delivered using geofencing, Mobile Commerce Daily reported on August 8.

Uber Competitor GetTaxi Raises $12M
Foursquare investor Ben Horowitz leaked new details about Foursquare’s revenue in an interview with Fast Company that will appear in its September 2013 issue.

Mobile Used For 50% Of North American Groupon Transactions
Groupon has revealed that 50 percent of its North American transactions were completed on mobile devices in June 2013, Mobile Entertainment reported on August 8. This figure was up 30 percent from June 2012.

PAR Updates Restaurant POS
New York-based hospitality technology provider PAR Technology Corporation has updated its PAR EverServ PixelPoint V12 point-of-sale software, QSR Web reported on August 7.

Bitcoin Incubator Coinlab Unveils First Company
VC-backed bitcoin incubator Coinlab announced its first funded company, Alydian, on August 7, TechCrunch reported.

Visa Ready Approves Swiff Chip & PIN
Visa approved Swiff, the mobile payment solution powered by Singapore-headquartered SCCP Group, for use with Visa payments through the Visa Ready Program, a press release revealed on August 8.

Instacart Unveils Amazon Prime-Like Yearly Subscription Service
San Francisco-based online grocery delivery provider Instacart released “Express” on Thursday, August 8, a new service it compared to Amazon Prime, TechCrunch reported.

CSI, M3 Partner For Hotel-Based Accounting Software
CSI Enterprises and M3 Accounting + Analytics, a provider of hotel-specific accounting solutions, have entered a new alliance.

UK Shops Trial PayPal’s “Check In” mPayments App
PayPal announced that various shops in Richmond and London are now testing its mobile payments technology that allows customers to pay with their first name and photo, reported Finextra.

AzeriCard, OpenWay Develop Mobile Wallet For Azerbaijan Consumers
AzeriCard, an Azerbaijan-based card processing firm, has announced a partnership with software firm OpenWay to develop a mobile wallet, reported Banking Technology.

Technology-Savvy Youth Help Drive Turkey’s eCommerce Growth
Recent research from Euromonitor International concluded that Turkey’s eCommerce market is rapidly growing, and predicted the market will have an annual growth rate of 15.8 percent for the next five years, reported eCommerce Facts.

EU Consumers Lose Confidence In Online Cross-Border Sales
According to eCommerce Facts, a new study indicates that European consumer trust is declining. Results show that only 35 percent of respondents claim they feel confident when purchasing online goods from sellers outside of the EU.

Poll: Nearly Half Of UK Payday Customers Have A Positive Experience
Contrary to the UK government’s negative perception of the payday lending industry, a new poll reported by The Telegraph reveals that almost half of British consumers said they had a positive experience with payday loans.

One-In-Four Brits Need To Borrow Money To Pay Bills
A uSwitch.com report reveals that more than one-in-four British consumers need to borrow money to make ends meet.

Global Mobile Ticketing To Triple In Growth By 2018
New research from Juniper predicts that global mobile ticketing transactions will triple to 16 billon euros annually by 2018.

Briefs from August 8, 2013

Groupon Names Eric Lefkofsky New CEO
Chicago-based daily deals giant Groupon named co-founder Eric Lefkofsky its new CEO on Wednesday, All Things D reported.

Amazon Debuts One-Click App Purchases
Global eCommerce giant Amazon announced that the Amazon Appstore is now open to HTML5 web applications and mobile websites, TechCrunch reported on August 7.

Report: Foursquare Revenue To Top $20M
Foursquare investor Ben Horowitz leaked new details about Foursquare’s revenue in an interview with Fast Company that will appear in its September 2013 issue.

Bitcoin Investments Are Securities, Texas Judge Says
A Texas federal judge ruled on August 7 that the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) can proceed with its lawsuit against Trendon Shavers, the Texas man accused of operating a bitcoin Ponzi scheme this July, Forbes reported.

Yelp Extends Local Reach Into Home Services
ReachLocal, Inc. (NASDAQ: RLOC), a leader in local online marketing and commerce solutions for small- and medium-sized businesses (SMBs), today announced a partnership with Yelp (NYSE: YELP), the company that connects consumers with great local businesses.

TTV, Updata Power LendKey’s $12.5M Series B
New York-based lending platform LendKey has raised $12.5 million in new funding as part of its Series B round, TechCrunch reported on August 7.

WillCall Raises $1.2M To Make Concert Sales Mobile
San Francisco-based music discovery and ticketing app WillCall has raised $1.2 million in new funding from SV Angel, Sean Parker and Oliver Jung, TechCrunch reported on August 7.

USAT Launches ePortGO For Taxi Payments
USA Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ: USAT), (“USAT”), a leader of wireless, cashless payment and M2M telemetry solutions for small-ticket, self-serve retailing industries, today officially launched ePortGOTM an end-to-end cashless payment, dispatch and navigation solution designed to simplify and economize the daily processes of today’s taxi and for-hire vehicle businesses while accommodating the increasing demand for secure, in-vehicle credit/debit card acceptance.

TSYS Processing Comes To Exatouch Retail
Exatouch™ Retail POS software systems are now available with integrated Total System Services, Inc. (NYSE:TSS) payment processing (TSYS®).

Stephen Crowley Replaces George Hogan As WEX CIO
WEX Inc. (NYSE: WEX), a leading provider of corporate payment solutions, today announced Stephen R. Crowley has joined the company as senior vice president, shared services and chief information officer.

Report: Anti-Money Laundering Spending Tops $5B
New research from WealthInsight has found that global anti-money laundering (AML) spending totaled $5.3 billion in 2012, up from $3.6 billion in 2008, The Paypers reported on August 7.

Cardtronics Expands In UK, Enters Germany Through Acquisition
Cardtronics, a global ATM services provider, announced it recently acquired Cardpoint Limited to expand its presence in the UK and enter the German market.

French Railway Adopts VeriFone Mobile Payments Solution
French railway network, SNCF, announced it has selected VeriFone Systems’ PAYware Wynid payments solution to enable customers to purchase tickets through mobile payments, reported Banking Technology.

Clarks Allows Online Purchases With V.me Digital Wallet
Visa Europe and WorldPay revealed that customers shopping at Clarks shoe store can now make online payments with their V.me by Visa digital wallets, reported Finextra.

Orange Money Allows Visa Payments In Botswana
Bostwana’s Orange Money and Visa announced Orange Money customers are now able to access money 24 hours a day through ATMs, at the point of sale, or when making online purchases through retailers that accept Visa transactions.

Briefs from August 7, 2013

PayPal Partners With Alliance Data
Loyalty and marketing solutions provider Alliance Data signed new agreements with online payments service PayPal on August 6, a press release for the company said.

AmEx, Wells Fargo Announce Credit Card Issuing Deal
Two companies that share the same founders and a rich history, Wells Fargo (NYSE: WFC) and American Express (NYSE: AXP), announced today a new chapter of partnership that will see Wells Fargo issuing new credit cards accepted on the American Express network.

Western Union, Axcess Financial Renew Short-Term Loan Partnership
The Western Union Company (NYSE: WU), a leader in global payment services, renews a multi-year agreement with Axcess Financial affiliate Check ‘n Go, an innovative short-term, small-dollar lender.

Tencent Adds Payments To WeChat
China-based Internet services portal Tencent has updated its mobile messaging apps Weixin and WeChat to include payments services, a sticker store and a game center, The Next Web reported on August 5.

Dairy Queen Tests Loyalty-Based mPayments App
Minnesota-based fast food franchise Dairy Queen has announced that it will test a new mobile application for loyalty rewards and payments, Mobile Commerce Daily reported on August 6.

Cooking Site Food52 Debuts New eCommerce Shop
New York-based crowdsourced cooking project Food52 launched a new online store on August 6, TechCrunch reported.

i2c Provides Prepaid, Fraud Services For True Link Financial
Silicon Valley-based cloud payment processing and emerging commerce solutions provider i2c will provide True Link Financial with prepaid processing and advanced fraud migration services, according to a press release.

GoCardless, Sage Fight U.K. Cash Flow Concern
U.K.-based business management software provider Sage and small merchant bank transfer service GoCardless announced a new partnership on August 6 that will seek to enable businesses to better collect timely payments, a press release revealed.

SecureBuy Updates Platform For Blacklist Order Processing
SecureBuy, a provider of payments fraud prevention technology, has updated its eCommerce and mPayments fraud solution to allow merchants to process orders from blacklists, the company announced yesterday.

MasterCard, UBA Design Personalized Debit Card In Nigeria
MasterCard announced yesterday a partnership with United Bank for Africa to launch Nigeria’s first personalized debit card.

Adyen’s mPOS Solution Enters Denmark, Norway, Switzerland
Holland-based global payments company Adyen announced that its payment solution Shuttle is now available in three new European countries.

Report: Online Banking More Prevalent In U.A.E. Than In U.K.
According to Samena Daily News, the U.A.E. has a greater proportion of online banking than the UK.

Privatbank Offers Free Money Transfers Between Russia And Ukraine
Ukraine-based Privatbank announced the launch its PrivatMoney service that enables users to make money transfers from Russia to Ukraine with zero fees, reported Finextra.

Ukash Expands Operations In Italy
Global online cash payment company Ukash announced it has increased operations in Italy through a partnership with Epipoli, an international marketing company, reported Finextra.

Fifty Percent Of Kenyans Use Mobile Payments
A new report reveals that 70 percent of non-cash transactions in Kenya are completed through Safaricom’s M-Pesa services, reported African Business Day.

Bank Of Scotland Is Fined For Repeating The Same Mistake For 3 Years
The Bank of Scotland has been caught in a major slip up and is being fined with a £75,000 fee for repeatedly faxing customers’ account information to the wrong numbers, reported Finextra.

Briefs from August 6, 2013

Square Adds Payments Tracking Capabilities To iOS App

VeriFone Debuts Payment-As-A-Service Solution, VeriFone Point

Visa Prepaid Accounts To Go Contactless In SingTel Union

Payday Lenders Face NY Regulatory Pressure

Report: SMB mPOS Reader Adoption Reaches 40%

hybris Teams With Accenture In Post-SAP Sale Move

Bitcoin Leaders Form “DATA” Regulatory Body

Oppenheimer Fined $1.4M For AML Violations

Financial Social Network WalletHub Exits Beta

Virtual Piggy Teams Up With Prepaid Provider InComm

Western Union, eTranzact Launch Mobile Money Services In Nigeria