On the web:

• Why I Invested in Bitcoin - Bloomberg - "There is no central server, no central authority and no owner. Bitcoin can be slowed but not shuttered."
• Google adds in-app payments to the latest Chrome build as it prepares to bundle Google Wallet in its browser
• Anonymous Payment Schemes Thriving on Web - New York Times - "The real concern, security experts say, are private payment services that claim to do due diligence, but do not do even the most basic verification."
• Feds Wrongly Demonize Privacy in Liberty Reserve Case - American Banker (Marc Hochstein) - "I've previously argued that some payments should remain anonymous after physical cash fades away..."
• Is the Government Trying to Kill Digital Currency? - American Banker - "Government officials insist they are not trying to curtail the growth of digital currency."
• Digital currency for the general public - Tomorrow's Transactions - "It seems to me that as the currency iceberg slips under the waves of the cyber-sea, we’re going to see a new world of choice between currencies that embody different values, and that's a good thing."
• Disney gets into wearable tech with the MagicBand - The Next Web - "Disney is introducing a new MagicBand device that ties into a new service that allows theme park visitors to make purchases and reserve experiences."
• Banks’ existing relationships give an advantage in mobile payments - Ovum -
• Will Amazon Become Universal Login for Ecommerce? - eCommerce Bytes - "…it may give shoppers confidence that a merchant using Amazon credentials is more trusted…"
• Overstock and Newegg win an e-commerce patent ruling - Internet Retailer

On the wires:

• CaixaBank, Santander and Telefónica to create first joint venture between banks and telecom operators in Europe to develop new digital businesses - CaixaBank - "This is the first alliance in Europe between financial institutions and telecom operators to innovate jointly in the creation of new digital services."
• CardSpring Partners with VeriFone to Increase Availability of Card-Linked Services - "Through this partnership, retailers and third-party developers will be able to leverage VeriFone’s industry-leading open payment platform to create a new generation of applications that bring the power and accountability of digital commerce tools to hundreds of millions of retail shoppers."
• Discover’s PULSE Network Selected as JCB’s Preferred Choice for Global ATM Transactions - "This expansion strengthens our already successful relationship by offering JCB cardmembers the ability to access cash at PULSE U.S. ATMs."
• TSYS Signs Payments Agreement with KeyBank - "As we move aggressively toward expanding our presence in the consumer credit card market, we need a partner who can provide us with strong card industry insight, flexibility and speed-to-market..."
• Cardlytics Granted First Patent - "This patent cements our position as the true creator of this industry. ..."

On the web:

• Possible Fed Successor Has Admirers and Foes - NY Times - A look at Janet L. Yellen, Vice Chair of the Federal Reserve, by Binyamin Appelbaum.
• Federal Judge Threatens to Hold Merchant Trade Groups in Contempt Over Swipe-Fee Websites - WSJ - Judge John Gleeson is irritated about the website: http://merchantsobject.com/
• The Future of Mobile Payments: How to Make Sure You’re Ready
• PW Interview: Amber Feng, Stripe API, The Payment Web - Programmable Web - "Before Stripe, online payments mainly consisted of decades-old banking infrastructure grafted onto the web, resulting in an exceedingly complex process for businesses and a cumbersome experience for their customers..."
• Tesco: NFC payments are too complex and offer too few benefits - NFC World - "NFC was revolutionary 10 years ago but I think it just might have passed its sell-by date…"
• The Redesigned US$100 Note - coming October 8, 2013
• NACHA Positions the ACH Network To Be a P2P Payments Player - Digital Transactions - "...NACHA last August submitted an ACH P2P payments proposal for for comment last August and gave it final approval March 7."
• NACHA PAYMENTS 2013: Highlights from Day One and NACHA PAYMENTS 2013: Day Two Highlights - GXS' All About B2B Blog - Patty Hines
• 2013 Advanced Payments Report - Edgar Dunn - "The Advanced Payments Report 2013 … is based on a review of the global payments landscape, surveys of payments industry stakeholder opinion…"
• Total System Services Management Discusses Q1 2013 Results - Earnings Call Transcript - "…on the issuing side of our business, we kicked off what I would describe as our most significant business and technology initiative since, really, the launch of TS2."
• American Express streamlines expense tracking via mobile app - Mobile Commerce Daily - "The ReceiptMatch program is being rolled out for American Express Open business card users…"
• Prepaid Popularity on the Rise - The Members Group Blog - "The American Bankers Association study also found that more than 50 percent of U.S. FIs currently offer, or plan to offer, prepaid or reloadable debit cards."
• Visa Survey: Prom Spending Surges 33% Nationwide - "Prom season spending is spiraling out of control as teens continuously try to one-up each other…"

On the wires:

• Tabbedout Launches Powerful Merchant Marketing Tool 'Periscope' - "Periscope gives merchants the ability to monitor customer use of Tabbedout, review their customer's purchase history, collect and respond to guest reviews and create mobile marketing campaigns…"
• CPI Card Group Expands EMV Card Manufacturing Capabilities to Support EMV Migration in the U.S. - "The migration to EMV in the U.S. is unprecedented in terms of size and scale."
• Consult Hyperion joins Open Identity Exchange - "OIX is a non-profit trade organization driving the adoption of new and existing online identity products and services through the development of trust frameworks and listing services."
• FactorTrust Launches Underbanked Index - "Every three months, the Underbanked Index will provide a range of data points including demographic, loan behavior, seasonal effects and others, to help shed light on underbanked consumers."
• Too Busy to Save Money: Research at Stanford Graduate School of Business Examines Why Consumers Pass Up Store Discounts - "Seiler's look at individuals' purchases over time likewise suggests they're trying to minimize search costs."
• PULSE and fisoc Announce Agreement to Provide Buzz Points Rewards Program to Financial Institutions - “In this digital age, our solution enables PULSE to offer its financial institution participants a fully turn-key rewards program. This will provide a distinct advantage to PULSE in the highly competitive debit industry.” (See: Buzz Points)
• NCR Introduces Anti-Skimming Technology to Help Banks Increase Consumer Trust and Reduce Costs - “There were approximately 20,000 skimming incidents in the United States last year. The average cost per incident approached $50,000 and skimming costs across a U.S. bank’s entire ATM network is equivalent to about $2,500 per ATM each year."

On the web:

• Jack Dorsey Explains: Why Square Is Getting Into Gift Cards - WSJ
• Can a Computerized Credit Card Disrupt the Payment Industry? - PCMag.com
• PayPal Launches Prepaid “PayPal My Cash Card” for Cash-Preferred Customers - TechCrunch
• Earthport Partners With Bank Of America for Cross-Border Payments - RTT News
• ‘European Square’ iZettle Expands To Spain, Taking Total Markets To Seven - TechCrunch
• The Interchange Fee Cap: One Year Later - Portals and Rails

On the wires:

• Bango Launches Carrier Billing for Google Play
• Intuit GoPayment Unveils New Features to Help Small Businesses
• Seamless Enters into Agreement with Nordic Service Partners
• IdentityMind Releases Anti Fraud add-on Module for Zen Cart
• Payment Alliance International and Planet Payment Announce Strategic Partnership
• EUFISERV Expands European and Global Coverage with PULSE Global ATM Network
• EVO Payments International Acquires PowerPay
• Cardtronics Canada Growth Continues With Acquisition

On the web:

• Wallaby Raises $1.1 Million For Cloud-Based, Universal Credit Card - TechCrunch
• Kuapay Takes Mobile Payments Solution to NYC to Battle Square, Google Wallet - BetaKit
• Mobile Payments Haven’t Yet Caught On In The United Kingdom - QR Code Press
• Payvia Wins Exclusive Contract To Power SMS Donations for Obama Campaign - TechCrunch

On the wires:

• New Celent Report on Merchant Funded Rewards
• PULSE and Motorola Employees Credit Union Sign Long-Term Agreement
• Seamless: Garanti Bank Launches The First Mobile Payments Through QR codes in Romania

According to PULSE, debit issuers participating in the 2012 Debit Issuer Study expect to see a 15% growth for PIN debit, and 8% growth in signature debit transactions this year.

The debit market is expanding at the low-end, with small-ticket transactions continuing to displace cash. While the average ticket on a debit transaction is $38, the median is just $19, with more than 30 percent of transactions now less than $10.

On the web:

• Retailers To Collaborate on Their Own Digital Wallet - Wall Street Journal
• Google Wanted to Create a Google Bucks Currency - Digital Trends
• PayPal Casts Doubt on Near Field Mobile Payments Systems - The Guardian
• LevelUp Now Seeing $1M Per Month In Transactions; Launches API - TechCrunch
• We Don't Have a Mobile Payment Problem; We Have a Mobile Shopping Problem - Wired.com
• The Cashless Society: One Man’s Quest to Survive without Bills or Coins - Slate Magazine
• UK To Get Cardless Cash Withdrawals (via Ukash) - ATM Marketplace
• Me, My Money, and My Devices - MIT Technology Review

On the wires:

• VeriFone Bringing Lottery to Card Payment Screens
• Chase and Hyatt Unveil Co-Branded Hotel Card with EMV Chip Technology
• Payment Processors Worldwide Rely on Information Builders for Customer-Facing Analytics
• SelectCore to Launch Virtual Visa Through Its Facebook Social Mobile Remittance Platform
• Oberthur Technologies Leverages Global EMV Expertise and Historical Market Presence in the US
• FiftyOne Global Ecommerce Strengthens Service to Canada with Acquisition of Borderfree
• Orange to Offer Visa Mobile Prepaid Accounts to Orange Money Customers
• PULSE Adds Issuers to Network, Expands ATM Coverage in 2011
• MasterCard Recaps Recent Mobile Payments Partnerships

PULSE has announced an agreement with Obopay to enable real-time money transfer capabilities for PULSE financial institution participants.

“Combining our extensive debit network with Obopay’s broad range of mobile money solutions gives consumers a faster and more efficient way to pay with their debit card, while also enabling new revenue generating opportunities for our participants,” said Judith McGuire, Executive Vice President of Product Management at PULSE. “A growing number of mobility-minded consumers require instant payments and transfers. The agreement with Obopay is one way we can help facilitate that for our financial institutions and their account holders.”

On the web:

• House Lawmakers to Propose Repeal of Durbin Swipe-Fee Rule - BusinessWeek
• Lemon.com Lets You Store, Organize Your Receipts In The Cloud - TechCrunch
• Mobile Payments Looking at Turbulent Times - CNET Reviews
• $4.7 Billion in Digital Goods Will Pass Through PayPal This Year - Mashable

On the wires:

• PULSE and NETS Sign Long-Term Network Agreement to Increase POS and ATM Acceptance
• Digital River Extends Global E-Commerce Agreement with Nuance Communications
• Upromise by Sallie Mae Spreads Holiday Cheer with Increased Cash Back for College
• Western Union Business Solutions Online FX Service Now Available in France, Germany, Ireland and Italy

On the web:

• Visa Offered 35% Interchange Cut for Small Merchants to Delay Durbin - Digital Transactions
• Peter Thiel: If I'd Known, I Would Never Have Started PayPal - Business Insider
• Beeline and Alfa-Bank Launch Russian Mobile Payments Brand Called RuRu - NFC World
• Discover Chief Says Pulse Has Beefed up for Expected Durbin Volume - Digital Transactions
• PayPal Says Mobile Payments To Hit $3 Billion - Wall Street Journal
• Can 'Zoosh' At The POS Overcome The Mobile Payments Gap? - StorefrontBacktalk
• Danish Cellcos Form Joint Venture to Tackle Mobile Payments - Rethink Wireless
• An Industry Divide over Durbin’s Impact on PIN Debit for E-Commerce - Digital Transactions

On the wires:

• More Americans Plan on Using Credit Card Rewards This Summer to Offset Rising Travel Costs

A new study of debit cards in the US market commissioned by PULSE indicates financial institutions are employing new tactics to increase debit card use:

According to the fifth-annual study, 72 percent of issuers view improving the performance of their debit portfolios by increasing penetration, activation and usage as a top priority this year. One of the key tactics issuers are using to accomplish this objective is the deployment of instant issuance technology.

PULSE has announced that it is "bringing the security, reliability and convenience of PIN debit to online shopping with the introduction of PULSE Internet PIN debit." The new payment solution, which uses Acculynk's PaySecure Internet PIN debit software, "reinforces the issuer and cardholder relationship by using a financial institution-branded graphical PIN pad." READ MORE »

PULSE has announced findings from its 2010 Debit Issuer Study that "the debit market remained robust during the second year of the economic downturn and is projected to grow strongly in 2010. The study finds that much of the growth in debit use is in small-ticket transactions, suggesting that more consumers prefer debit over cash."

PULSE also reported that "the 2010 Debit Issuer Study found that debit card penetration – the percentage of eligible accounts that can be accessed by a debit card – has remained steady at 73 percent since 2007. Sixty-four percent of consumer debit cards are active, largely unchanged from 66 percent in 2008."

With respect to fraud losses borne by issuers, PULSE found that "average signature POS fraud losses increased 43 percent last year from 5.2 basis points (bps) to 7.5 bps, and PIN POS fraud losses rose by 24 percent from 0.8 bps to 1.0 bps." READ MORE »

PULSE, the Discover Financial Services business unit responsible for expanding global cash access for the company, has signed a long-term ATM acquiring agreement with TRIONIS, a European interbank processing network. TRIONIS is jointly owned by retail banks from nine European countries, the European Savings Banks Group, and First Data. READ MORE »

PULSE has launched PULSE Select, a surcharge-free ATM network alliance with the MoneyPass Network. The PULSE Select/MoneyPass Surcharge-free ATM Network provides financial institution participants with access to more than 16,000 surcharge-free ATMs in the US. READ MORE »

PULSE has announced the launch of a new website, DebitFacts.org, that is says offers "consumers timely and practical information about debit's role as a convenient payment method and a valuable financial planning tool. The site addresses myths and misconceptions surrounding debit cards by offering fact-based information consumers need to know when using debit, as well as advice on making debit part of their personal money management strategy." READ MORE »

Surcharge-free ATM access is gaining in popularity among debit card issuers as they explore new ways to better serve cardholders, according to the 2008 Debit Issuer Study, commissioned by PULSE. Financial institutions also are increasingly offering debit rewards. READ MORE »

The PULSE debit network has launched its annual ATM & Debit Card Safety Awareness Month, encouraging consumers to review and practice safety tips when using their ATM/debit cards. This month, PULSE will release a series of safety tips for consumers to consider when traveling or making debit card purchases throughout the year. READ MORE »

A new study of debit cards in the US market commissioned by PULSE identified superior performance by “best-in-class” issuers - 'suggesting significant untapped potential in debit for many financial institutions.' READ MORE »

PULSE and its parent company, Discover Financial Services, have announced the signing of agreements with seven additional financial institutions for the issuance of Discover Debit cards. READ MORE »

PULSE EFT Association, a Discover Financial Services company, has announced that it is implementing DebitProtect, a fraud detection and notification system, across its ATM/debit network.

The PULSE ATM/debit network has announced it is offering "utility companies, lenders and certain other billers a new payment option that enables consumers to automatically pay recurring bills using a debit card without entering their personal identification number (PIN)."

The PULSE EFT Association has launched its annual nationwide effort encouraging consumers to review and practice safety tips when using their ATM/debit cards. New to the network’s ATM/Debit Card Safety Awareness Month campaign this June is an increased focus on privacy and fraud protection.

The PULSE EFT Association has announced results of its 2007 Debit Issuer Study - concluding that "U.S. debit card-issuing financial institutions experienced debit card transaction growth of 18 percent in 2006 and expect continued strong growth in 2007."

The Board of Directors of the Independent Bankers Association of Texas has announced it has voted unanimously to exclusively endorse Discover Debit, a new signature debit program developed jointly by PULSE EFT Association LP and Discover Network.

PULSE EFT Association LP and LINK Interchange Network Ltd., the operator of the UK Cash Machine Network, have announced a reciprocal agreement that will allow the 4,200 financial institution participants in the PULSE ATM/debit network to offer their cardholders access to all but a handful of the more than 58,000 cash machines across the United Kingdom and allow LINK to offer its 38 participating financial institution members access to an additional 250,000 PULSE cash machines in the United States.

David Breitkopf writes for the American Banker about Stan Paur's view of the future of the US debit card market. Paur has been president and CEO of Pulse EFT for years and is about to step up from that role to chairman following last year's acquisition of Pulse by Discover.

Discover Financial Services has announced the launch of Discover® Debit, the first new signature debit program to be offered to financial institutions since the ruling in the Department of Justice anti-trust case in October of 2004. Two signature debit card products will be supported: the Discover Debit Card for individuals and the Discover Debit Business Card.

The PULSE EFT Association has announced the result of a new study into debit card fraud, comparing PIN and signature debit.

Discover Financial Services and China UnionPay have announced they have entered into a strategic alliance that will lead to acceptance of Discover Network Cards at China UnionPay ATMs and point-of-sale terminals in China and acceptance of China UnionPay cards on the PULSE network in the U.S. Both also agreed to pursue ways to enable acceptance of China UnionPay cards at Discover Network's more than four million merchant and cash access locations in North America.