On Twitter (follow us: @paymentsnews):

Banks,merchants,3rd parties all want to control mobile wallet experience. Don't consumers want to control their own experience?#PAYMENTS2013

— gschmeltzer (@gschmeltzer) April 23, 2013

Metaphor of the day: USAA exec compares MCX to the boat in "Life of Pi" #payments2013

— Aaron McPherson (@aaronmcpherson) April 23, 2013

Why can't the US have an FPS? They have laser beams and transistors and things don't they, same as us? #NACHA

— Dave Birch (@dgwbirch) April 23, 2013

50+% of all deposits are via mobile says Andrew Collins from USAA #payments2013 @chyppings

— Lanny Byers (@lannybyers) April 23, 2013

On the web:

• How Not to Install an ATM Skimmer - Krebs on Security - "Experts in the United States and Europe are tracking a marked increase in ATM skimmer scams."
• Macworld’s Transcript of Tim Cook’s Remarks on Today’s Earnings Call - Daring Fireball - "So he’s not talking about a new iPad or iPhone, he’s talking about an entirely new leg on the stool."
• Apple's Tim Cook on Mobile Payments: 'It's In Its Infancy' - MacRumors - "While he didn't address the topic directly, he did note that the mobile payments were "just getting started" and still "in its infancy."
• Payment Platform Startup ZooZ Raises $2M Series A To Add Product Functionality & Build Global Presence - TechCrunch - "The startup says that its user-friendly checkout platform helps prevent cart abandonment by frustrated mobile shoppers." (Zooz website)
• Passbook is standard for mobile wallets: Sumotext exec - Mobile Commerce Daily - "What I do like [about Apple] is that they didn’t wait for all of the payment stuff to shake out…"
• How Apple and Amazon Will Shape Mobile Payments - Bank Systems & Technology - "Although Apple already has a bridgehead into the payments business thanks to iTunes, experts seem to think Apple will refrain from entering the mobile payments business."

On the wires:

• The Center for Financial Services Innovation Awards $2.5 Million to Promote Financial Capability - "The eight organizations funded this year offer fresh perspectives on the industry’s efforts to foster positive financial behavior and provide concrete mechanisms for meeting consumer needs in new ways…"
• U.S. Bank Employees Testing Voice Command Feature on FlexPerks Visa Mobile App - "…allows U.S. Bank FlexPerks® Travel Rewards Visa Signature® customers to use their voice to view account balances, search transactions and make a payment on their accounts in the FlexPerks mobile app."
• ROAM Launches ROAMPay™ X4 - a new Mobile Point of Sale Application - "ROAMpay X4 is designed to help businesses of all sizes and geographies extend their traditional point of sale infrastructure onto Android and iOS-based smartphones and tablets."
• Vindicia and GlobalCollect help digital media distributors extend reach internationally
• Discover Financial Services Reports First Quarter Net Income of $673 Million or $1.33 Per Diluted Share - "Discover delivered strong profitability and growth in the first quarter, which combined with our outlook allowed us to increase our dividend by 43%..."
• Chase Sapphire Preferred Gives Cardholders New Reason to Celebrate Fridays - "The First Friday Favorites Facebook app, now available on Chase Sapphire’s Facebook page, allows consumers to interact with top restaurant lists in 17 U.S. cities by making reservations directly through OpenTable…"
• Fiserv Introduces Processing Services for Positive Pay and Account Reconciliation Solution - "ARP/SMS from Fiserv allows for immediate correction and updating of transactions as well as files and reports for real-time positive pay reporting, helping corporate customers gain tighter control over disbursements."
• ACI Worldwide Completes Expansion of Online Banking from the Desktop to the Mobile Device - "The solution delivers features to iPhone and Android smartphones previously limited to the desktop including personal financial management tools, integrated bill payment and account-to-account transfers."
• VeriFone Helps China PnR Address Growing Payments Complexity with POS Estate Managed Services Contract

On the web:

• Blackhawk Network Plans IPO of Shares Valued at $200 Million - Bloomberg
• Balanced Raises $800K On Little-Known Fundraising Platform Called Facebook - Pando Daily
• Lenovo To Include Contactless Payments On Notebooks, Tablets - MobilePaymentsToday.com
• US Treasury Issues Guidance On 'Convertible' Virtual Currencies - The Next Web
• PayPal Stops Foreign Charity Donations From Singapore Accounts - TechCrunch

On the wires:

• NCR Silver Makes Everyday Easier for Small Businesses with Gift Card Update
• Merchants Can Leverage Transactional Data for Big Benefits, Says Tranzlogic
• GlobalCollect Expands Asia Pacific Presence In Support Of Booming E-Commerce Market
• Bluefin Payment Systems Integrates Payment Gateway with CUSI Software Platform

BOKU and GlobalCollect announced GlobalCollect has selected BOKU as its global mobile payments partner. The partnership integrates BOKU’s payments platform into GlobalCollect’s international payment network, allowing online merchants to accept mobile payments at checkout.

“At GlobalCollect, we provide our merchants with the best fitting online payment methods available for their business," said John Snoek, Global VP Marketing. “BOKU’s mobile payment platform is trusted and available in more countries than any other mobile payment option. Next to that BOKU brings unrivalled experience on the mobile payment process to the table. It was clearly the best option for our merchants, who now through the partnership can substantially increase checkout conversion, reduce cost and accelerate time to market of mobile payments."

On the web:

• Stripe Aims to Reinvent E-Payments - Businessweek
• Why It’s So Hard to Transfer Cash to Your Friends - NYTimes.com
• Isis to Come with Prepaid Card, Location-based Offers - NFCNews
• Facebook Announces Operator Billing For Its Apps - TechCrunch
• Belgian NFC Payments Joint Venture Hits the Rocks - NFC World
• QR Codes vs NFC: Cheaper, but Worth the risk? - Portals and Rails

On the wires:

• PayPal Opens up New Frontiers for Carrier Payments
• MoneyGram Adds Near East Bank to Money Transfer Network
• Western Union, WIND to Launch Mobile Money Transfer service in Italy
• GE Capital Retail Bank and Pep Boys Renew Consumer Financing Agreement
• Western Union, Roshan to Introduce Mobile Money Transfer in Afghanistan
• GlobalCollect Acquires Latin Latin America Payment Service Provider Sub1
• Failsafe Payments Adds WebMoney Transfer to its CertoConnect Service
• Chase Selects Gemalto for Trusted Service Management
• 3V Launches New Visa Pre-Pay Youth Card Service

On the web:

• Invasion of the Star-Studded Debit Cards - WSJ
• Bank of America, Citigroup Face Billions In Losses in (Interchange) Antitrust Case - TheStreet
• Spanish Banks Prepare Barcelona and Madrid for Mobile Payments - NFC World

On the wires:

• Valve Rewards Outstanding GlobalCollect Service with Contract Renewal
• Twenty Colleges Choose Heartland Payment Systems for Financial Aid Disbursement Services
• Eastern Mountain Sports Blazes New Trails with VeriFone iPad Retailing Solution
• Ingenico and Voltage Security Partner on End-to-End Encyrption
• NCR Launches its Highest Performing POS Terminal to Date

On the web:

• Mobile Melee (Infographic) - Fast Company
• American Express Serves Up P2P "Pay Me Back" on Ticketmaster - NetBanker

On the wires:

• ReD Targets Previously Anonymous Cyber Criminals with New IP Intelligence
• Despegar Selects GlobalCollect as Preferred PSP to Drive Latin American Expansion
• Western Union and USAID Launch Second African Diaspora Marketplace with Small Business Workshops in Seven Cities
• QVC Selects CashStar to Power its New eGift Card Program

On the web:

• Updated PayPal Mobile App for Android Featuring P2P NFC Capabilities - PayPal Blog
• In Myeong-dong Shopping District, Mobile Phones Replace Credit Cards - The Korea Herald

On the wires:

• Secure Remote Payment Council White Paper on Secure eCommerce and Mobile Payments
• Bell ID (Netherlands) Launches TSM Software Solutions to Manage NFC Ecosystem Complexity
• GlobalCollect Study Reveals Key Differences in Social and Mobile Gaming in China and Korea
• InteliSpend Prepaid Solutions Expands Offerings in Canada with Universal Visa Prepaid Card
• Delego and YESpay Jointly Provide SAP Customers with a Multi-channel EMV Payment Solution
• Aconite Partners with MK Technology to Distribution Payment Solutions in Vietnam

On the web:

• Bank of America risks Reputational Capital with Debit Card Fees - Washington University News Analysis

On the wires:

• Turkish Airlines Enlists CyberSource to Combat Online Fraud
• Avira Chooses GlobalCollect as Preferred Payment Service Provider

On the web:

• Square, the iPhone Credit Card Machine, Goes Mainstream - The Atlantic Monthly
• Free Checking Thrives at Smaller Banks, Durbin Notwithstanding - American Banker
• Carriers to Invest $100 Million in Isis Mobile Payments Venture - Mobiledia
• Will ModoPayments Finally Monetize Check-In? - TechCrunch
• Sizing the Mobile Payments Market - eMarketer

On the wires:

• X-Cart and CRE Secure Partner to Eliminate PCI Scope for eCommerce Merchants
• GlobalCollect Joins Demandware LINK to Provide Pre-Built Integrations to Retailers
• SHAZAM Supports Adaptive Payments' Pentagon Mobile Payment Technology

On the wires:

• Vindicia and GlobalCollect Sign Partnership Agreement
• Network Merchants (NMI) Launches Mobile Processing Solution

On the web:

• InformationWeek: Microsoft Needs Mobile Money
• Business Standard: NPCI to Charge Banks for Mobile Transactions (India)
• TechCrunch: The Ever-Elusive Mobile Wallet: Why NFC Chips Are Overhyped And Will Underdeliver

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

Following the recent entry of paysafecard into the Latin American market, GlobalCollect has announced it has increased the number of countries where it offers this payment method to include Argentina. According to the companies, "paysafecard enables consumers to make online cash payments in local currencies without needing a bank account or credit card. In a region where - according to the World Bank - only 30% of adults have a bank account, offering alternative payment methods such as cash and prepaid is crucial for e- commerce merchants to succeed. paysafecard is being distributed via 3,500 outlets in Argentina, which will be the company's base for further expansion into Mexico." READ MORE »

GlobalCollect has announced that private equity firm Welsh, Carson, Anderson & Stowe (WCAS) has signed an agreement to acquire a majority share in GlobalCollect from General Atlantic LLC. GlobalCollect's senior management continues to hold the remaining stakes in the firm and will remain in charge of the operational business. The terms of the transaction were not disclosed. READ MORE »

GlobalCollect and Varien have announced a strategic partnership aimed at empowering online retailers to meet their global sales objectives. "The Magento e-commerce platform, developed by Varien, is based on open source technology that provides merchants with high levels of flexibility and control over the user experience, content, and functionality of their e- commerce channel. By joining forces with GlobalCollect, Magento’s clients gain access to an unrivalled portfolio of local, alternative, and international payment methods in over 200 countries and for 170 currencies." READ MORE »

Emirates has announced it has implemented GlobalCollect’s payment processing service to offer alternative payment solutions for bookings on www.emirates.com. Starting in 37 countries across the world, customers can choose from a range of alternative payment methods hosted by GlobalCollect, including local credit and debit cards, local bank transfers, real time bank transfers, cash (Western Union Quick Pay), direct debits, and eWallets (PayPal). READ MORE »

Sony Music has announced it has signed an agreement with GlobalCollect and Materna GmbH to create a retail offering on its labels’ artist websites across the EMEA region to enable consumers to download digital content. According to the two companies, Sony Music is using GlobalCollect’s portfolio of local and international payment methods to facilitate all related e-payment transactions. With the help of a widget, Sony Music is driving traffic directly to the website of an artist to allow fans to share information and to download the artist’s repertoire. GlobalCollect’s single-interface online payment platform, WebCollect, offers fans a broad array of payment products from credit cards to alternative payment methods to purchase MP3 music downloads. At a later stage, the e-commerce offer will be expanded to include artist merchandise, concert tickets, and more. READ MORE »