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:

• On the road with Google Wallet - Drop Labs
• NFC Service for Stores Offers ‘tap and go’ Digital Receipts - Springwise
• PayPal Increases Fees for International Mass Payments - AuctionBytes
• Tango Card Aims To Make Gift Card Giving A More Personal Experience - TechCrunch
• Gift Card Exchange: Websites Where You Can Trade Cards for Cash - International Business Times
• Pay-by-Name Purchasing: Changing the Future of Spending (Square Card Case) - KMOV.com St. Louis
• Going Mobile - Getting Ready for the Mobile Wallet - Market News Canada
• Google to Bring Mobile Wallet Application to the UK in 2012 - Mobile Commerce News
• ING Direct Opens 1st Branch in San Francisco, a Cafe - SFgate
• Forget mobile payments. The future is the mobile wallet - InfoWorld
• Looking Forward to 2012: The Continued Demise of Cash - TIME.com

On the wires:

• King’s Town Bank Launches Western Union® Money Transfer Online

On the web:

• PayPal Tests New NFC Mobile Payment App in Sweden - MobilePaymentsToday.com
• Isis looks for Mobile Payments Partnerships beyond the US - Rethink Wireless
• Western Union Targets Small Businesses with Payments Portal - American Banker
• InspirePay Launches Online Payment Tool - Boulder County Business Report
• Target To Sell Credit Card Business, Focusing On Core Biz - Forbes
• The Many Flavors of EMV - Portals and Rails

On the wires:

• Citi Expands Global Coverage of Its Commercial Cards Business in Israel
• BillingTree Enlists IP Commerce to Expedite Merchant Boarding Services

Judging from its website, eBillme has apparently become "a Western Union Company". Google date range searches indicate this happened sometime in the last six weeks. Things look like business as normal for eBillme buyers and sellers.

Western Union has announced today that it is extending its prepaid card platform to the United Kingdom with the launch of both the Western Union MasterCard® Gift Card and the Western Union GoCash Service. "The launch marks the first international extension of Western Union’s prepaid program outside of the United States with further expansion planned in coming months to Asia, Latin America and additional European countries."

MasterCard and Western Union have announced a global agreement to cooperate on prepaid cards and money transfers.

MasterCard and Western Union have been working together to provide prepaid card services for the past year. The expanded global relationship makes MasterCard the preferred brand for Western Union-sponsored prepaid programs around the world and makes Western Union the preferred money transfer service for MasterCard. Consumers will have access to a global network to transfer and load funds onto prepaid cards. Western Union and MasterCard prepaid cardholders will be able to reload their prepaid cards at MasterCard rePower locations as well as at participating Western Union® Agent locations.

On the web:

• Visa Europe Takes 8.8% Stake In Monitise - WSJ.com
• Cash, Check, or Charge: Paying for Illegal Activities - Portals and Rails
• Kenya's mobile money service M-Pesa now processes more transactions that Western Union all around the world - IntoMobile

On the wires:

• Fifth Third Bank Selects FIS for Online Bill Payment
• First Data Selects VeriFone for Caribbean POS Product Offering
• Western Union Business Solutions to Introduce Electronic Wallet for Small Businesses; Bringing Simplicity to Global B2B Payments
• Leading Payday Lender QC Holdings, Inc. Makes the Switch to MoneyGram

On the web:

• BofA, Wells Fargo, JPMorgan Sued by ATM User Over Fees - Bloomberg
• USPS Eyes Prepaid Card Market - MyBankTracker.com
• Whole Foods Stores Stop Accepting Checks - Raleigh Durham News & Observer

On the wires:

• Durbin to Wells Fargo: Your Numbers Don't Add Up
• Bethpage Federal Credit Union Announces “No Fee” Free Checking Guarantee
• Western Union and Societe Generale International Retail Banking extend Global Money Transfer Agreement
• Chase Strengthens Partnership with United’s MileagePlus to Offer Ultimate Rewards Cardmembers Expanded Travel Flexibility
• New Report from Mercator on Online Bill Management

On the web:

• Google Wallet Merchants Kick Off Mobile Payments With Discounts - AllThingsD
• Windstar Selects SeaPay for Payroll Debit Card - Cruise News
• BillGuard’s Scam-Seeking Service Captures $10M in Venture Funding - Wall Street Journal

On the wires:

• Adyen Opens for Business in Latin America
• Pay Anywhere Enhances its No Compromise Mobile Payment System for Apple and Android Users
• Western Union to Offer Money Transfer Services Through FOREX Bank in Nordic Countries of Denmark, Finland, Norway and Sweden
• MOBIbucks and Advanced Integrated Systems Partner to Provide First Mobile Money Platform for the Caribbean
• mBlox Launches New Strategy and Digital Identity to Power Mobile Commerce

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:

• U.S. Gets to Catch Up On Credit Card Security - The Register Card
• Mobile Interactive Group Acquires Mobile Payments Startup Zaypay - TechCrunch
• FinCEN Delays Compliance With Some Prepaid-Access Regulations - WSJ
• Reviewed: The American Express Gift Card Store and its New eGift Card Option - NetBanker

On the wires:

• IP Commerce Closes $20.7 Million Investment from Intel Capital and Existing Investors
• HSBC Launches BUSINESS without BORDERS for U.S. Companies
• VeriFone Expands International Channels with Hypercom Distributors
• Western Union and TouchNet Team Up to Develop Payment Solutions for Universities & International Students
• Puerto Rico’s Conversion to All Electronic Toll Collection Debuts with Dramatic Results
• Nexon Rolls Out New Karma Koin Cards This Month to Retailers

On the web:

• The Ritz London Installs China UnionPay Terminals - AsiaTravelTips
• UK Mobile Payments JV Hits Rocks Before It’s Started: Three Appeals To EU - mocoNews

On the wires:

• Visa Europe France Announces Strasbourg’s Contactless Payments Pilot
• Facebook Commerce Evolves with New Version of Payvment
• US Airways Adopts NCR Mobile Boarding Pass Solution
• Western Union Expands Network: Money Transfer Services now also available at over 30,000 ATMs in Europe and Asia
• Skrill (ne Moneybookers) Announces Acquisition of Payolution

On the web:

• Digital Money Facing a Challenging Road - Rethink Wireless
• The Disintermediation of the Point of Sale Industry - Point of Sale News
• A New Payment Instrument for Britain: The Deposit Cheque - Consult Hyperion Blog
• Square No Longer Requires Signatures For Transactions Under $25 - TechCrunch
• VeriFone CEO Bergeron May Deploy $1 Billion Annually for Acquisitions - Bloomberg
• Is Recent EMV Announcement the Catalyst the U.S. Needs to Catch Up? - Portals and Rails
• Google Adds Carrier Billing (via Vodafone) to Android Market in UK - thinq_
• Debit Overdraft Fees, While Voluntary, Are Still Steep - New York Times
• Debit Card Fees Could Signal Trend - Atlanta Journal-Constitution

On the wires:

• Western Union Now Available in Namibia in Collaboration with Magnet Bureau De Change
• Cloud Billing Software Provider MetraTech Collaborates with Scribe for Online Billing Integration
• Failsafe Payments Adds TrustPay To CertoConnect

Western Union has announced the national expansion of its enhanced walk-in bill payments service as a result of a successful regional test. "The national expansion offers consumers a network of 10,000+ billers for mortgage, auto loan, insurance, credit card, utility, telecomm and cable payments including AT&T and Comcast, plus walk-in access to a network of participating Western Union Agent offices, nationally-known retailers and other locations."

On the web:

• How a Fat Wallet Makes You Spend More - SmartMoney.com
• When Will We be Paying for Stuff with our Smartphones? - USATODAY.com
• Bitcoin: Tech Vets Explore Potential of Digital Currency, Try to Avoid Pitfalls - GeekWire

On the wires:

• New Mercator Update on European Card Market 2011
• Western Union and The Pantry to Offer Western Union goCASH Service
• CashStar Sees Strong Adoption of B2B Digital Gifting Platform Among Leading Retailers, Incentive Firms and Third-Party Distributors

On the web:

• How Visa Plans To Dominate Mobile Payments, Create The Digital Wallet And More - TechCrunch
• Subway Ready for Mobile Payments Test - QSRweb.com
• Digital Receipts at Stores Gain in Popularity - New York Times
• Fighting the Rising Tide of Elder Financial Abuse - Portals and Rails

On the wires:

• Great Hill Partners Acquires Plimus for $115M USD
• Online Money Transfer S.A.L. to Offer Western Union Business Solutions in Lebanon
• New Austrian Rail Provider Selects VeriFone PAYware Mobile Enterprise

Western Union has announced it has signed an agreement with Travelex Holdings Limited to acquire the Travelex Global Business Payments division, a leading specialist provider of international business payments, for £606 million in cash.

Travelex Global Business Payments (TGBP) conducts business payments annually for 35,000 customers in 14 countries. The division provides international payments services to business clients, namely small and medium-sized enterprises (SME’s), corporations, and third party distribution partners including over 500 financial institutions.

On the web:

• Zynga Explains Method For Recording Real Revenue From Virtual Goods - Wall Street Journal
• Speed Bumps on the Road to Virtual Cash - New York Times
• New Starbucks Mobile-Pay App Adds Facebook Link for Gifting - American Banker
• Handicapping the Mobile Payments Battle - Mobile Commerce Daily
• China Telecom Opens Mobile Payment Function For 3G Users In Beijing - ChinaTechNews.com
• Alipay Invades China's High Streets, with Mobile Barcode Payments - Penn Olson
• PayMate launches 'WayPay', 1st Mobile Cashless Management Service - MSN India
• VeriFone to Unveil Tablet Credit-Card Reader This Year to Take On Square - Bloomberg
• Users Can Now Buy Facebook Credits in 32 New Currencies, Including Chinese Yuan - Inside Facebook

On the wires:

• 99Bill Enters into Strategic Agreements with Eight Major Banks in China
• Plimus Debuts Online GoGuides to Accelerate Seller and Affiliate Sales Success
• TCF Requests Dismissal of Lawsuit Challenging Durbin Amendment
• Regions Bank Completes Purchase of $1 Billion Credit Card Portfolio
• Western Union Expands Cash Payment Option to More Than 60 Countries for AdSense Publishers

Western Union has announced the launch of the Western Union Money Transfer Receive Card.

The innovative new card gives consumers a simple way to receive money transfers. All they have to do is pick up a card at a select Western Union Agent location in the U.S. and complete the transaction to receive a money transfer online or over the phone. The process is seamless and can be completed quickly, with no forms to fill out.

On the web:

• Rich? Have We Got the Credit Card for You - Wall Street Journal
• Isracard in Pilot to use Cell Phone as Credit Card - Globes Online
• Mobile Payment Players Swallow Their Egos - eWEEK Europe UK
• How Starbucks Is Paving the Way for Mainstream Mobile Payments - Mashable
• Square Closes That $100 Million Round, Mary Meeker Joins Board - TechCrunch

On the wires:

• London Cabs Gear Up to Accept Cards for 2012 Olympics
• Regions Bank Signs Agreement with Western Union to Offer Global Money Transfer Services
• INSIDE Secure and ZTE Working to Bring NFC Phones to GSM and 3G Networks
• Singapore’s Largest Taxi Operator Selects VeriFone NFC Payment Solution
• Global Blue Selects Hypercom Payment Solutions for Merchant Customers Worldwide
• MoneyGram International Celebrates Milestone: 1,000 locations in France
• ProfitStars Introduces Remote Deposit Anywhere: Mobile and Flatbed RDC Solution
• Online Payment Processor PayLane Introduces Partner Affiliate Program

Western Union has announced that it has signed an agreement to acquire Finint S.r.l., "one of its leading money transfer network agents in Europe. Finint manages more than 10,000 subagent locations across Italy, Spain, and the United Kingdom."

On the wires:

• mBlox Closes New Fund Raising Round with Singapore’s EDBI
• Western Union Money Transfer Service Available at Banco Bradesco Locations in Brazil
• Giftango and Vesta Eliminate Payment Fraud for Merchants of eGift Cards
• YESpay International Provides a Cross-Border Integrated Payment Solution to North American Merchants
• CPI Card Group Signs Reseller Agreement with DeviceFidelity to Commercialize Mobile Payments

On the web:

• Wall Street Journal: Wireless Carriers Scrap Plans for Their Own Mobile-Payment Network
• FOX Business: PayPal's Mobile Business (Scott Thompson Video Interview)
• VentureBeat: Why in-app billing doesn’t solve all of Android Market’s problems
• MSNBC: Online Game Gets Real-World Banking License in Sweden
• NFC World: Oracle: Is NFC Too Slow for Payments and Coupons?
• NACS Online: Tap-and-Go Payments on the Rise in UK

On the wires:

• Kmart Launches Western Union’s Next Generation of Walk-in Payments Service
• SIX Card Solutions Boosts Global Payment Services with TNS Agreement

On the web:

• TechCrunch: Square’s Disruptive Payment Service About To Get A Huge Retail Boost From Apple
• MasterCard Blog: It’s Time to Get Serious About Mexican Remittances
• Portals and Rails: Can electronification close tax loopholes opened by cash?

On the wires:

• Five of Top 10 Retail Banks Now Signed to Deploy Mitek Systems for Mobile RDC
• Western Union and Online Resources Team for Last Minute Payments
• 3Delta Systems Unveils the Power of Payment WorkSuite
• Bridge2 Solutions® Adds Virtual Gift Card Delivery Powered by Giftango
• Travelex Global Business Payments and Fundtech Launch International Payment Solution for Financial Institutions

On the web:

• BusinessWeek: Federal Reserve Must Face Bank Suit Over Credit Card Fee Rules

Western Union has announced that consumers can now send money directly to the mobile “wallets” of Safaricom M-PESA subscribers in Kenya from 45 countries and territories. 'The service rides on Western Union’s worldwide network and trusted global “hub” for processing cross-border remittances. It also builds on the unprecedented success of M-PESA, a domestic mobile money transfer service in Kenya offered by Safaricom that has attracted more than 13.5 million customers since its launch in 2007."

On the wires:

• IP Commerce Strikes a Distribution Agreement with ReD
• Western Union, Emirates NBD Bank to Offer International Money-Transfer Service in UAE
• ChargeSmart Introduces New Bill Presentment and Hosted Payments Portal
• NEFCU Implements Guardian Analytics for Fraud Prevention
• Aconite announces Mobile Prepaid Solution

On the web:

• All Facebook: Facebook Creates Payments Subsidiary
• MoneyControl: PlaySpan-Visa deal: How it all happened (Video Interview with PlaySpan CEO)
• StorefrontBacktalk : PCI Delist Move Threatens Mobile Payment Security

On the wires:

• Pivotal Payments Selects FIS for EFT Solutions
• YellowPepper Certified by Western Union as a Mobile Money Transfer Vendor
• New Aite Group Report on How Banks Could Recoup Lost Debit Interchange Fees With Prepaid
• USA Technologies To Raise $10.7 Million In Common Stock Private Placement
• E-Debit Global Announces Launch of Its Micro Payment and Loyalty Card System

On the web:

• Portals and Rails: FinCEN Proposed New Rule Addresses Money-Laundering Risks in Prepaid Products
• NFC World: Orange launches NFC payments trial in Poland
• Advertising Age: AmEx Campaign Positions Rewards Points as Social Currency
• Wall Street Journal: Five Ways Banks Could Learn From Apple's iPad
• Boston Herald: Purchase Receipts going paperless
• San Francisco Chronicle: Yorder App Gives Fans Direct Line to Concessions (Mobile Payments)
• NPR Planet Money: Why Are Consumer Credit Card Agreements So Long?
• Wall Street Journal: EMC's SecurID Division Suffers 'Sophisticated Cyber Attack'
• Hughes Hubbard & Reed: Payments Cards and the California Zip Code Ruling
• Springwise: App Tells Visually Impaired the Value of Paper Currency
• Wall Street Journal: RIM and Carriers Fight Over Digital Wallet

On the wires:

• Western Union, Seven Bank to Introduce International Money Transfers in Japan
• Union Plus and Rev Worldwide Partner on Prepaid Cards for Working Families
• MoneyGram Reveals Strong Results from New Fraud Prevention Tool
• CreditCall Rolls Out End-to-End Encryption Technology
• Study Finds That Identity Theft Protection Services Can Help Mitigate Incident Costs

On the web:

• TechCrunch: Offermatic Raises $4.5 Million From Kleiner Perkins
• MSNBC: The credit card of the future: It 'talks' to you
• Reuters: Senate Must Act First on Debit Card Fees Say Bachus
• TechCrunch: Square’s Jack Dorsey Responds to VeriFone’s Security Hole Allegation

Western Union has announced the launch of a new foreign-exchange (FX) payment service that will enable small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) businesses to make payments from their mobile devices.

The new mobile service is designed for busy professionals and offers an intuitive interface for customers making international business payments. The service, which offers more than 140 currencies to choose from, allows users to make payments to suppliers in global markets anywhere, anytime, and lock in a currency-exchange rate and fee before transferring funds.

On the wires:

• Credit Card Clarity: CARD Act Makes Pricing Clearer, More Competitive
• Western Union and Etisalat to Introduce International Mobile Money Transfer Service in 18 Countries
• BillingTree Supplies Pulaski Electric System with Text Billing and Payment Solution
• Intuit Extends GoPayment No Monthly Fee and Free Credit Card Reader Offer

On the web:

• Bank Info Security: SWIFT Audio Interview on Globalization and Regulation
• MasterCard Blog: Addressing the “D” Word
• Dow Jones: PayPal Launches Payment Services with China UnionPay