The Center for Financial Services Innovation has posted a new paper titled "Distributing Prepaid Cards Through Worker Centers: A Gateway to Asset Building for Low-Income Households" (PDF) by Katy Jacob, Janice Fine and Lauren Leimbach.

Gawker and Andrew Ross Sorkin's DealBook point to this "must see" video of two Bank of America employees celebrating the combination with MBNA. "One bank, one card, one name that's known all over the world..."

The latest Nilson Report has arrived featuring an in-depth look at the top payment card manufacturers world wide (subscription only). The issue also has articles discussing a $100 million merchant fraud, a look at BasePoint Analytics, and the top 150 Maestro issuers, MasterCard's PIN-based debit product.

The Network Branded Prepaid Card Association has announced the results of a recent survey that concludes "one in five consumers plans to purchase branded gift cards (a gift card with an American Express, Discover, MasterCard, or Visa brand logo) this holiday season." The poll, conducted by BK Research, found that branded gift cards were chosen more often as an item on a consumer’s shopping list than a branded toy (18%), an iPod or mp3 player (14%), a computer or laptop (12%) and a game console (7%).

The October 2006 edition of the First Annapolis Navigator is now available. This month's issue features article on Gas Price Volatility Ripples Through Payments Markets, Debit Centricity in Western European Acquiring, Discount Rate Structures in the Small Merchant Market, Variation in Acquirer Deployment of Web Based Services and The March of Progress for Commercial Cards in the U.K.

American Express has announced the opening of a "Members Lounge" at The Mall at Short Hills in Short Hills, New Jersey. According to Amex, its "Members Lounge is the ultimate destination, designed to reinvigorate Cardmembers as they shop during the busy holiday season. The Mall at Short Hills is one of the country's preeminent luxury shopping destinations, making it a prime partner to house the Members Lounge for American Express(R) Cardmembers. This is the first time American Express has hosted a Members Lounge at a retail shopping location."

Dave Birch writes on the Digital Money Blog about how lots of folks want to get into the payments business - while those in the payments business don't find it such a great business. The grass is always greener, as they say! Dave explores the implications that the Single European Payments Area (SEPA) might have on this whole business of payments. Good stuff from Dave, as usual!

In its first serious foray into consumer incentive programs, PayPal this morning announced new promotional incentive programs "valued at up to $100 million just in time for the busy holiday shopping season. As part of these incentives, millions of PayPal customers will be eligible to receive cash rebate offers up to $20 when paying with PayPal on qualifying merchant Web sites in North America, including eBay.com. Additionally, consumers will find free shipping from some of the Web's most popular brand names when they pay with PayPal this holiday season."

Visa USA has announced “$100K Holiday from Visa,” an "integrated national promotion that gives 10 lucky consumers the chance to get what they really want over the holidays. When Visa cardholders use their card from November 1 to December 31, they will be automatically entered for a chance to win $100,000 to spend however they choose."

Austin Ventures has announced the recapitalization of CreditCards.com, an online destination for consumers to search, compare, and apply for credit cards. Additionally, Elisabeth DeMarse, former CEO of Bankrate, the Internet's leading aggregator of financial rate information, was named CEO of the company.

Yuka Hayashi reports for the Wall St. Journal on the shift that's taking place as Japanese consumers begin to move away from paying with cash to increasingly pay using credit cards. Among other factors, the popularity of shopping online is behind the behavioral shift - as cash payments aren't possible online. On the other hand, the use of revolving credit - the mainstay of US credit card issuer economics - is a second behavioral shift that's still on the horizon.

Karen Kroll writes for Business Finance Magazine about some new uses of corporate purchasing cards - including for capital expenditures and travel and entertainment expenses.

Jack in the Box has announced the installation of new contactless payment card readers at all company restaurants will be completed by Dec. 31 - to "offer guests an easier, quicker way to pay. Guests will be able to pay simply by holding their cards in front of a reader at the front counter or drive-thru window. No swipe required." Jack in the Box partnered with American Express, Discover, MasterCard and Visa for the rollout.

Metavante has announced the availability of Metavante Prepaid Bill Payment, a new service that "makes bank-sponsored Internet bill pay available to consumers who use prepaid debit cards as an alternative to traditional checking accounts and banking relationships."

The Financial Times reports this morning that Morgan Stanley and Visa Europe have agreed to settle a dispute involving Visa denying membership to Morgan Stanley in 2000. That action led to an investigation by the European Union that led to formal charges against Visa being brought in 2004. As a result of Visa Europe permitting Morgan Stanley to join, Morgan Stanley has dropped its original complaint to the EU.

PAYMENTS 2007, NACHA's annual conference on electronic payments, will be held in Chicago from April 15-18, 2007 at the Hyatt Regency Chicago.

• NCR and ViVOtech Bring Innovative Payment Options to the Table
• Times Online (UK): Counterfeit card fraud on the rise
• First Data Announces Renewal of Contract with Wells Fargo
• CashEdge Partners With Canopy Financial to Offer World-Class Account Management Capabilities
• CheckFree Deploys RSA's Authentication Technology on Industry-Leading Electronic Billing and Payment Platform
• Merchant Link Launches TransactionVault(TM), an Innovative POS Security Solution to Combat Hackers
• Sig-Tec Integrates silex’s S1 Fingerprint Reader into Its Logical Access Security Solution for Healthcare
• Radiant Systems to Offer VeriFone Mobile Payment Processing Solution
• Ninth Largest Payments Processor in U.S., TransFirst, Signs License Agreement with IP Commerce
• CPI Card Group Joins Keycorp in a Partnership With Banamex and McDonald's to Launch the First MasterCard PayPass(TM) Program in Latin America
• Aegis Mortgage Corp. Selects BasePoint FraudMark™ to Curb Mortgage Fraud
• INSIDE Contactless and Perfect Plastic Printing Announce Distribution Agreement for Contactless Bank Card Technology
• Online Resources Launches New Internet Banking Deployment Options
• Hypercom Releases the Industry’s First Universal Contactless PIN Pad; Touchscreen Device Also Accepts EMV & Mag Stripe Cards, Offers WiFi Option
• Experian Executives to Speak at Federal Trade Commission Public Hearings
• My Payment Network Secures Investment and Expertise with Arc Capital Development