Remittances to Mexico, free trade and cross-border banking are the focus of the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas' latest issue of Southwest Economy (PDF). According to the Fed, "over the last decade or so, inflation-adjusted remittances [to Mexico] have grown at an average annual rate of 15.6 percent. Since 2000, the rate has risen to 20.4 percent."   » Continue Reading

Aaron Elstein reports for Investment News on the leveraged buyout of First Data Corp by KKR - and the potential challenges ahead in getting the deal's financing completed over the next five weeks.

In an article titled 'Charge It!", Elizabeth Holmes writes for the Wall St. Journal about how small businesses can get the best deal on merchant payment card processing. Holmes writes that "navigating the payment-card processing system can be an overwhelming and costly burden. With fees tacked on by as many as 12 intermediaries, from the equipment provider and the Internet service to the card issuers themselves, payment processing is often the third- or fourth-highest expense for a small business."

Online Resources and Fair Isaac have announced a partnership to "accelerate access to industry-leading collections and payment capabilities for hundreds of collection agencies and debt buyers."   » Continue Reading

Federal Reserve vice chairman Donald L. Kohn and Karen E. Dynan, a Fed economist, have written a paper titled "The Rise in U.S. Household Indebtedness: Causes and Consequences" (PDF) that, according to David Leonhardt writing for the New York Times, "says that consumer debt soared over the last six years mainly because of the rapid increase in housing prices. The research suggests that consumer spending may slow down over the next few years."

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