On the web:

• CMU students show fingerprints may be way to buy - "With PayTango, a swipe of the finger links users' personal information to their credit or debit card in less than 15 seconds, making for a quick and easy-to-use system."
• Do Cyberattacks Threaten Confidence in Our Payment Systems? - FRB Atlanta Retail Payments Risk Forum
• Atlanta a Key Talent and Business Market for Square's Payments Business - MidtownPatch - "The company, which launched its Atlanta presence by hiring eight former Google Inc. engineers, expects to have a staff of 35 infrastructure engineers and customer support staff by the end of the year."
• Alipay Launches Sound Wave Mobile Payments System In Beijing Subway - Techcrunch - "Alipay has launched a new payment system in the Beijing subway that uses sound waves to connect smartphones with ticketing machines."
• American Express mobile advertising campaign generates 95pc view-to-completion rate - Mobile Commerce Daily - "A big part of American Express’ mobile and digital initiatives center around narrative storytelling, from both marketing and consumer perspectives."
• The real cause of the Bitcoin bubble and burst - Financial Services Club Blog - "Bitcoin is an experiment. Treat it like you would a promising Internet start-up company: Maybe it will change the world, but recognize that investing your money or time in new ideas is always risky."
• Consultation on a new payments regulator for the UK - Consult Hyperion's Tomorrow's Transactions Blog - "Will PayCom work? It's impossible to say, since I don't know what it is supposed to do."
• Will Bitcoins make you rich? - Sydney Morning Herald - "…indeed, I don't care at all for Bitcoin as a currency. Instead, I wanted to buy Bitcoins as pure, shameless speculation. I wanted a chance to ride a rocket ship."

On the wires:

• Discover Card Leads the Way in Customer Loyalty for the 17th Consecutive Year - "Discover has managed to create the highest levels of loyalty by leveraging real, emotional category values…"
• UL first lab selected to provide testing for mPOS solutions for the Visa Ready Partner Program - "UL was selected as the first lab to guide mPOS solution providers who want to ensure their products are ‘Visa Ready’ through all of the certification processes required by Visa."

On the web:

• China’s Alipay Has 700 Million Registered Accounts - Tech in Asia
• Square's Global March Faces A Plucky British Challenger, mPowa - Forbes
• Payments Startup Stripe Expands to Canada in Challenge to PayPal - Bloomberg

On the wires:

• MasterCard Debuts First Single-branded Cards in China with Citibank
• Euronet Worldwide Expands Independent ATM Networks to Spain and Italy
• MasterCard Study: Bill Payment Represents Key Entry Point to Greater Financial Inclusion
• Visa and Others Form "Better Than Cash Alliance" to Accelerate Global Shift to Electronic Payments

On the web:

• A Guide to PayPal Alternatives in Asia - SGEntrepreneurs
• Contactless ATMs: The New Wave of Banking? - Think Money
• Obama Campaign Is Using Square For Fundraising - TechCrunch
• Google Wallet Struggles to Gain Acceptance - Mobile Commerce Daily
• Is the U.S. Payments Industry Following in the Footsteps of the Netherlands? - Portals and Rails
• Green Dot to Launch Bank Account This Year - American Banker

On the wires:

• PayLane Becomes a Certified American Express Partner
• GE Capital Extends Consumer Financing Program with Art Van Furniture
• MusicSkins Partners With Virtual Piggy Offering Innovative Youth Purchasing System
• South Carolina Selects Heartland as Preferred Provider for Electronic Financial Aid Disbursement
• GE Capital Retail Bank and ShopNBC Announce Renewal of Consumer Credit Card Program
• Canada's Payfirma Updates Its Mobile Payment App

ChinaTechNews is reporting that Alipay has acquired OnCard Payments, the third-party payment service subsidiary of Australia's OnCard International. Integrating the two services together, it's believed, will help Alipay's 550 million registered users buy airline tickets from major Asian carriers.

CardinalCommerce has announced the addition of Alipay to its eCommerce platform, Cardinal Centinel. "Cardinal Customers can now have immediate access to the large number of Chinese shoppers who desire international goods through Cardinal Centinel®, the patented Universal Merchant Platform. With registered users numbering over 550 million, Alipay is China's first third-party online payment platform to offer a cross-border online payment solution."

On the web:

• Bank of America's "Irregular Credit Card Activity" Alert - NetBanker
• Square Now Processing $4 Million In Mobile Payments Per Day - TechCrunch
• Reg E Expected to Add New Consumer Protections for Remittance Transfers - Portals and Rails
• Taulia Raises $8.5 Million To Help Companies Pay Their Invoices Early - TechCrunch
• Survey: Bank Customers Quick to Sign Up for Debit Rewards - But Slow to Redeem - COLLOQUY
• txtNation Release Direct Operator Billing for Easier Mobile Payments - Mobile Europe
• Properly Handling PayPal in Bangladesh - The Financial Express (Op Ed)

On the wires:

• MRC Board Election Results
• IFX Forum Ready to Lead Collaboration on Remittance Standards
• New York MTA Selects VeriFone TransitPAY for Bus Tracking Solution
• Alibaba Group, Yahoo!, and SoftBank Reach Agreement on Alipay

On the wires:

• VeriFone to Acquire South Africa Payments Solutions Provider
• Parkmobile and Liberty PlugIns Debut Pay by Phone Electric Vehicle Charging
• Telemundo Branded Gift Cards to Launch at Retail This Month via InComm
• New Aite Group Report on the Future of Merchant Acquiring

On the web:

• TechCrunch: WePay Adds Event Ticketing To Hassle-Free Group Payments Platform
• AllThingsD: Alipay Gets Its License to Operate in China
• PayPal Blog: PayPal Is Now a Payout Option for Developers Redeeming Facebrook Credits
• MIT Technology Review: What Bitcoin Is, and Why It Matters

Headline News is compiled by Glenbrook Partners:

• Discover Begins Rollout of Contactless Devices to Consumers
• Commidea Leads Contactless Transactions Adoption in UK
• INSIDE Contactless Launches SecuRead System-in-Package for NFC Mobile Devices
• iPayDNA and Payment Network AG (aka sofortüberweisung.de) Establish Business Partnership
• GlobalCollect Obtains License Pursuant To European Payment Service Directive

• Wall Street Journal: Card Issuers Reward Purchases
• MIT Technology Review: Shopping via Text Message
• MediaNama: Seven Indian Banks Launch P2P Interbank Mobile Payments; How It Works
• New York Times: For PayPal, the Future is Mobile
• ArcticStartup: Fortumo Expands To Thailand
• China Business News: China UnionPay Expands Services in Switzerland
• Reuters: EU Set to Accept Visa Europe Antitrust Offer
• Digital Transactions: Retailers See Gift Cards Boom As They Stress Reloadability
• GlobalTimes: Alipay Tops 500 Million Users
• Portals and Rails: Prepaid in the Mobile Channel - Balancing Financial Inclusion and Risk Management

GMAC, the Graduate Management Admission Council, has announced that people in China can now use Alipay, a major Chinese third-party online payment solution, to make purchases from the mba.com store, the official supplier of test-preparation material for the Graduate Management Admission Test (GMAT).

iPay88, a large eCommerce platform in Malaysian, and Alipay, China’s leading online payment service, have announced a strategic partnership. Under the agreement, Alipay will be able to provide its users with the ability to purchase goods from more than 2,000 Malaysian merchants who use iPay88, and iPay88 merchants will have access to Alipay’s more than 300 million registered users in China.

Alipay, which claims to be China’s largest online payment network, has announced that Alibaba Group will invest a total of RMB5 billion (equivalent to US$732 million) over the next five years.

The company said in a press release that the new investment "will be used to enhance infrastructure security; develop products to improve ease of use and convenience for customers; continue to grow a massive number of consumer accounts; build a comprehensive network of merchants; and retain and attract top-tier talent from the payments industry." READ MORE »

In a move it says is "aimed at enabling consumers in Mainland China to buy directly online from North American retailers," Alipay has announced a cooperation agreement with Philliou Selwanes Partners (PSP), a New York City based consulting and advisory firm, to promote the acceptance of its Chinese payment service to North American merchants.