Over on PaymentsViews.com, Glenbrook's Carol Coye Benson takes a look at the UK's Faster Payments Service. Carol spoke with David McFarlane, Company Manager, CHAPS Clearing Company about FP - and said she was surprised by much of what he said: FP is not what you thought!

comScore has released an inaugural study of the mobile financial services industry with a new report titled Mobile Financial Services: The Market Today & Opportunities for Tomorrow. The report provides a look at the current state of the industry and mobile financial users, and highlights areas for potential growth in this rapidly evolving market. READ MORE »

eBillme has announced it will give consumers 1% cash back for every purchase made using its cash checkout option. According to the company, "in order to qualify, online shoppers select eBillme for checkout at one of over 800 online merchant sites offering the credit card alternative payment option. Consumers can then sign-up for eBillme's cash back rewards and immediately start earning 1% cash back for every order. Once $10 in rewards has been earned, the cash can be redeemed on eBillme merchant sites, or shoppers may choose to continue earning before redeeming." READ MORE »

ClairMail has announced a record number of new customers and a 200 percent year-over-year revenue increase for the second quarter ending June 2009. The company says this record quarter "continues the rapid growth trend the company has experienced in the past 12 months." READ MORE »

TransUnion has announced that it TransUnion Credit Risk Index, a statistic developed to measure the changes in average consumer credit risk within various geographies, increased 1.98 percent from 124.79 in the fourth quarter of 2008 to 127.26 in the first quarter of 2009. On a year-over-year basis, the Credit Risk Index increased 7.10 percent (from 118.83 in the first quarter of 2008), the largest increase for that time period in this decade. The Credit Risk Index is defined as the weighted average probability of 90-day delinquency or worse among consumers in a given region relative to the nation as a whole. READ MORE »

• Reuters: Sen Dodd seeks review of credit card rate hikes
• NYTimes.com: June Is Another Weak Month for Retail Sales
• U.S. Bank and TACA Airlines Introduce DISTANCIA Visa® Credit Card Program
• ChinaTechNews.com: China’s Alipay Reports Over 200 Million Users
• CNN.com: Medical credit cards: A high-risk, last resort option
• WSJ: Fixed-Rate Credit Cards May Be Thing of the Past
• Sacramento, Ann Arbor, Texas Tech Rollout Verrus Pay by Phone Parking