Broox Peterson comments on today's US Supreme Court decision in the case of Cuomo vs. Clearinghouse Association. "The decision today (5 Justices on majority opinion, 4 on opinion concurring in part and dissenting in part) holds that state attorneys general can enforce non-preempted state laws against national banks, contrary to the position of the OCC that such enforcement constituted preempted "visitation" under the National Bank Act."

Bank of America and First Data have announced "the formation of a new company that will deliver next-generation payments solutions to merchants ranging from small business to commercial and corporate clients worldwide."

According to the two companies, Banc of America Merchant Services, LLC will provide clients "with the most comprehensive suite of innovative payments solutions including credit, debit and prepaid cards to merchant loyalty, check and eCommerce payments." READ MORE

Thomas C. McCrohan and his colleagues at Janney Montgomery Scott recently surveyed over 300 payments industry professionals to ask several questions about interchange fees in the U.S. and the potential effects on payments companies. READ MORE

The Federal Reserve has published its latest annual report on the Profitability of Credit Card Operations of Depository Institutions. Section 8 of the Fair Credit and Charge Card Disclosure Act of 1988 directs the Federal Reserve Board to transmit annually to the Congress a report about the profitability of credit card operations of depository institutions.

From the report: "In 2008, credit card banks with assets in excess of $200 million reported net earnings before taxes of 1.43 percent of outstanding balances adjusted for credit card-backed securitization, down 132 basis points or nearly 48 percent from 2007. The 2008 rate of return is very low by historic standards; well below the average rate of return of 3.03 percent since 1986."

Bankrate.com has published its annual Credit Card Study with this year's edition focusing on terms and conditions -- the fine print of credit card agreements. The survey looked at two cards from the top 10 issuers, one platinum card and one rewards card. Bankrate found that the terms and conditions varied by issuer, not by the card. Issuers surveyed were: American Express, Bank of America, Capital One, Chase, Citi, Discover, FNB Omaha, USAA Federal Savings, US Bank, and Wells Fargo.

Economic confidence among small business owners rose slightly in June as cash flow concerns abated and the mood on the economy held steady, according to the latest Discover Small Business Watch. The monthly index rose to 80.9, up from 78.1 in May.

“Cash flow problems are back to levels that are more in line with what we’ve typically seen since the Watch began nearly three years ago,” said Ryan Scully, director of Discover's business credit card. “Cash flow concerns usually erode confidence because they represent something tangible to a business owner, more so than an expectation or perception about the economy.” READ MORE

• New Mercator Advisory Group Report: The Resilient Nature of Prepaid: A Bright Spot in a Down Economy
• Marketplace from American Public Media: A debit card is not a credit card
• Fiserv Names Maryann Goebel Executive Vice President and Chief Information Officer
• WSJ.com: Brazil's VisaNet Debuts On Exchange, Opens With 13% Gain
• Washington Post: Supreme Court Allows States to Challenge National Banks
• Springbok Launches Prepaid Payroll and Automated Bill Pay to Help Clients Optimize Payment Processes
• Small Business Trends: How to Choose Between a Credit Card and a Charge Card
• MasterCard Invites Consumers on a Priceless Escape to 'Break in a Pair of Jeans' This Summer
• New Celent Report: Indian Mobile Banking: Unexplored Opportunity
• Payment Data Systems, Inc. Announces e-Check Service Partnership with Plug’n Pay Technologies
• The Financial Services Club's Blog: Cracking ATMs the malware way