Cardline articles from February 2002

Cardline archives from February 2002

AMEX'S PROFIT DIVES.(fourth quarter financial results for American Express Travel Related Services Company Inc.)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
February 1, 2002... Undermined by a sharp drop in business travel and corporate spending, fourth-quarter earnings at American Express Co.'s card-issuing Travel-Related Services unit plummeted 64% to $170 million, AmEx reported today. That compares with $470...

AMEX'S CARD COUNT UP, BUT VOLUME DOWN.(fourth quarter results from American Express Co.)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
February 1, 2002... American Express Co. cards in circulation rose 6% to 42.4 million during the fourth quarter, up from 40.2 million a year earlier, the company reported today. However, average cardholder spending on AmEx-branded cards dropped 10% to $1,897...

ANN TAYLOR SELLS CARD PORTFOLIO TO ALLIANCE DATA.(Brief Article)
February 1, 2002... Alliance Data Systems Corp., the Dallas-based private label card-issuer, announced today that it has purchased the AnnTaylor Stores Corp.'s marquee private-label card portfolio for an undisclosed price. Ann Taylor disclosed earlier this month...

AUTOSMART CHIP CARD IS DESIGNED TO PROMOTE CUSTOMER LOYALTY.(for auto dealers)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2002... AutoSmart Inc., a Chantilly, VA-based company, last week began issuing a smart card that backers claim will promote car-dealership loyalty. Dealers can load special incentives onto the card that only will be available from the card- issuing...

WAL-MART TO CONDUCT A PRESENTATION OF ELECTRONIC CHECKS.(Brief Article)
February 1, 2002... Executives of Wal-Mart Stores Inc. will conduct a presentation concerning Wal-Mart's adoption of electronic checks at NACHA's annual conference on electronic payments and e-business April 14-17 in Dallas, a NACHA spokesperson tells CardLine...

DIRECT MERCHANTS GIVES FIRST DATA RESOURCES AN EXTENSION.(Direct Merchants Credit Card Banks, cardholder processing contact)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2002... Direct Merchants Credit Card Bank N.A., a subsidiary of Metris Companies Inc., announced today that it has signed a five-year contract extension with First Data Resources, the Omaha-based cardholder processing subsidiary of First Data Corp....

CREDIT COUNSELING FIRMS MERGE.(Money Management International, Consumer Credit Counseling Service of Greater Chicago)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2002... Money Management International, a Houston-based credit counseling firm that assists financially struggling consumers work out repayment plans for their credit card debts and other loans, has merged with Consumer Credit Counseling Service of...

SMART CARDS IN THE RUNNING FOR NEW DRIVER'S LICENSE.
February 1, 2002... Smart cards are among the technologies being considered for a proposed standardized driver's license that could be issued by the 50 U.S. states and Canada's 13 provinces and territories. Legislation is likely to be introduced next month into...

ARGENTINA SINKS FLEET IN 4Q; IMPACT ON CARDS NOT CLEAR.(FleetBoston Financial Corp.)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
February 1, 2002... The effect of Argentina's financial crisis on FleetBoston Financial Corp.'s big card operation there is uncertain. FleetBoston today reported a fourth- quarter net loss of $507 million, primarily due to its operations in Argentina.The holding...

SOUTH AFRICA'S ISSUERS COOPERATE ON FRAUD-DETECTION SYSTEM.
February 1, 2002... Retail Decisions Inc., a Providence, RI-based company that builds fraud- detection models, has developed a neural network system to detect credit card fraud for South Africa's three-largest card issuers, Tom Spillane, vice president of sales...

SPEECH RECOGNITION MAY TRANSFROM CALL CENTERS.(Brief Article)
February 1, 2002... New speech recognition technologies expected to reach the marketplace in the next year will help credit card call center managers train agents in the arts of listening, responding and cross-selling, say industry experts. Speech recognition...

CONCORD EFS, VERIFONE SIGN VERICENTER DEAL.(terminal-management licenses)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2002... Concord EFS Inc. has purchased 200,000 VeriCenter terminal-management licenses, VeriFone Inc., the Santa Clara, CA-based payment terminal manufacturer, announced today. Terms were not disclosed. Memphis, TN-based Concord uses the VeriCenter...

TRAVELER'S EXPRESS TESTING SELF-SERVICE MONEY ORDER ATMS.
February 1, 2002... The Traveler's Express/MoneyGram financial services company is testing self- service money order dispensing stations at ATMs. The company has partnered with Diebold Inc., the North Canton, OH-based ATM manufacturer, to offer the service to...

MASTERCARD EXTENDS PGA SPONSORSHIP.
February 1, 2002... MasterCard International has extended its sponsorship of the Senior PGA Tour through 2008, MasterCard and PGA officials announced last week. MasterCard also will sponsor the Tour championship at the Hualalai Golf Club on the Big Island of...

COMPUCREDIT'S STOCK PLUNGES ON ACCOUNTING CHANGES.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
February 1, 2002... Shares of CompuCredit Corp. plunged 41% today after the Atlanta-based subprime card marketer announced that "preliminary" fourth-quarter earnings of $5.6 million could be cut by $5.8 million due to changes in accounting procedures on how...

FINANCIALLY TROUBLED NEXTCARD CUTS STAFF 19%.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
February 1, 2002... NextCard Inc., the San Francisco-based online issuer, is cutting its staff by 19% or 170 persons, a spokesperson tells CardLine today. The job cuts, which were disclosed Tuesday evening, will occur throughout all areas of company's business...

MASTERCARD TO TARGET MIDDLE-MARKET COMPANIES.
February 1, 2002... MasterCard International today unveiled a global program to increase business for its commercial card issuers by targeting mid-sized companies with annual sales between $10 million and $250 million. "This is our first concentrated effort...

SMART CARD READERS SLOWLY COMING INTO THE PICTURE.(Brief Article)
February 1, 2002... Smart card readers are slowly becoming more available and less expensive as the popularity of smart cards in this country continues to grow, members of a Smart Card Alliance panel said this morning during a Webcast. Companies ordering large...

H&R BLOCK TO INSTALL VERIFONE TERMINALS IN ITS OFFICES.
February 1, 2002... H&R Block Inc., the Kansas City, MO-based tax preparation company, is deploying VeriFone Inc. Omni 3200 terminals and CR 600 check readers at its 10,000 offices nationwide. The terminals and check readers allow customers to pay for H&R Block...

EFUNDS REPORTS BIG 4Q NET INCOME GAIN.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
February 1, 2002... EFunds Corp., a Scottsdale, AZ-based transaction-processing and software- support company, today announced a fourth-quarter net income of $11.6 million, or 24 cents per share, up 183% from $4.1 million, or 9 cents per share, during the same...

FAIR, ISAAC PROSPERS.(Fair Issac and Co.'s fiscal first quarter returns)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
February 1, 2002... Fair, Isaac and Co., the credit-scoring and analytical technology firm, Tuesday reported net income of $13.5 million, or 57 cents per share, for its first fiscal quarter ending Dec. 31, up 54% from $8.8 million, or 40 cents a share in fiscal...

JCB INTERNATIONAL TO ISSUE CREDIT CARDS IN CHINA.(through licenses with Chinese banks)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2002... JCB International Co. Ltd., Japan's largest credit card company, announced Wednesday that it will begin issuing credit cards in China as part of China's entry into the World Trade Organization. Tokyo-based JCB will grant card-issuing licenses...

AMEX TO OPEN CORPORATE TRAVEL OFFICE IN CHINA.(American Express Co., China International Travel Service launch travel agency)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2002... American Express Co., which has a merchant-acquiring business partnership with JCB International Co. Ltd in Japan and several other countries, announced recently that it has formed a joint-venture with China International Travel Service,...

DEBIT CARD INTERCHANGE RATES TO BE ELIMINATED IN EUROPE.(Brief Article)
February 1, 2002... Interchange rates for cross-border ATM and point-of-sale transactions will be eliminated July 1 by the 12 European countries that have adopted the euro. That likely will mean a loss of revenue for some European banks that acquire substantial...

PROVIDIAN POSTPONES TODAY'S EARNINGS RELEASE.(Providian Financial Corp. delays announcement)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2002... Providian Financial Corp. today said it is postponing its fourth-quarter and full-year 2001 earnings report scheduled for release late this afternoon. "We continue to make good progress in finalizing the key components of our capital plan with...

BAY AREA SMART CARD TRANSIT PILOT BEGINS TOMORROW.(San Francisco's Metropolitan Transportation Commission launches pilot)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2002... San Francisco's Metropolitan Transportation Commission will launch its TransLink smart card pilot tomorrow. More than 4,000 participants will use the card, which can be read by both contact and contactless readers. The card will replace the use...

FIRST NATIONAL BANK OF MARIN HIRES COLLECTIONSX.(bank to use Web-based XRecovery collection and recovery software)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2002... Subprime secured card issuer First National Bank of Marin has hired Atlanta- based CollectionsX to help reduce First National's chargeoff rate, officials of Atlanta-based CollectionsX announced today. Las Vegas-based First National will use...

ALLIANCE DATA SYSTEMS NARROWS 4TH Q LOSS.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
February 1, 2002... Alliance Data Systems Corp., the Dallas-based private-label card issuer, Wednesday reported a fourth-quarter net loss of $1.9 million, or 12 cents per share, compared with a net loss of $3.4 million, or 9 cents per share, for the same...

EFUNDS PURCHASES HANCO'S U.S. ATMS, MERCHANT CONTRACTS.(Hanco Systems Inc.)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2002... EFunds Corp., the Scottsdale, AZ-based transaction processor, today announced that it has purchased Hanco Systems Inc.'s U.S.-owned ATMs and merchant contracts for the ATMs Hanco leases. Hanco manages and provides sales and service for more...

DUN&BRADSTREET FORMS ALLIANCE WITH AMEX SMALL BUSINESS.(American Express Co.)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2002... D&B, formerly known as Dun&Bradstreet, will market its products to American Express Co.'s small-business customers under a multi-year agreement announced today between the two companies. D&B's relationship with AmEx follows last week's...

HUMBOLDT ENDS ISO CONTRACT FOLLOWING THEFT.(Humboldt Bancorp ends contract with independent sales organization)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2002... Humboldt Bancorp, the Eureka, CA-based banking company that was the victim of a $5 million theft of cash from ATMs, is ending its business relationships with an ATM independent sales organization that also resupplies ATMs. Humboldt CEO Theodore...

TRANSMEDIA CHANGES NAME TO IDINE.(Transmedia Network Inc. changes name to iDine Rewards Network Inc.)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2002... Miami-based discount-dining and loyalty program marketer Transmedia Network Inc. today changed its name to iDine Rewards Network Inc. The new corporate name reflects the iDine brand the company adopted for its various card-linked...

CONSECO LAUNCHES PRIVATE-LABEL CARD PROGRAM FOR SNAPPER.(Conseco Finance Corp.)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2002... Conseco Finance Corp. is launching this month a private-label card program for McDonough, GA-based Snapper, Inc., a manufacturer of lawn mowers, snow throwers and tillers that are sold by 4,000 independent dealers and Bentonville, AR-based...

MERCHANT SERVICES SIGNS HYPERCOM TERMINAL DEAL.(Brief Article)
February 1, 2002... Merchants Services Inc., a Union, NJ-based provider of bank card merchant services, has agreed to a 12-month, multimillion-dollar contract to acquire 10,000 payment terminals from Phoenix-based Hypercom Corp. The contract is the first between...

APPOINTMENTS.(multiple personnel changes)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2002... MasterCard International Thursday appointed Sonny Sannon regional president for Middle East/Africa in Dubai Internet City. Sannon, who will have responsibility for building MasterCard's business in the region, replaces Donald Van Stone, who is...

COURT TENTATIVELY OK'S METRIS SETTLEMENT.(Metris Companies Inc., Direct Merchants Credit Card Bank)(Brief Article)
February 8, 2002... Metris Companies Inc., the Minnetonka, MN-based card issuer, has agreed to pay $5.5 million in attorneys' fees and court costs to settle class-action lawsuits involving more than 4.5 million cardholders, company officials announced Friday....

ADVANTA CEO TO FORGO SALARY, BONUSES FOR STOCK OPTIONS.(Dennis Alter, Advanta Corp.)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
February 8, 2002... Dennis Alter, CEO of Advanta Corp., the Spring House, PA-based business card issuer, announced today that he will voluntarily forgo all salary and bonuses for 2002 through 2004 in exchange for stock options on 1.5 million Class B shares. The...

PAYPAL IPO SCHEDULED FOR MID-WEEK.(PayPal Inc.)(Brief Article)
February 8, 2002... The long-awaited initial public offering of PayPal Inc., the Palo Alto, CA- based electronic-currency provider, is expected to be completed on Wednesday or Thursday amid rumors that it's already sold out. A PayPal spokesperson refused to...

CONCORD LAUNCHES ANTI-TERRORIST PROGRAM.(Concord EFS's Primary Payment Systems subsidiary's Identity Check service)(Brief Article)
February 8, 2002... Concord EFS Inc., the Memphis, TN-based payment processor, today announced that customers that employ its Identity Check, a computer-software system that uses multiple national databases to identify suspicious information used to open checking...

ISSUERS FLOOD CANADIANS WITH CARD OFFERS.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
February 8, 2002... The volume of credit card solicitations mailed to Canadian homes set a record in October, according to Mail Monitor, the direct-mail acquisition tracking service of BAIGlobal Inc., which is based in Tarrytown, NY. Card issuers mailed 29.5...

E*TRADE TO USE ATM NETWORK TO SELL CELLULAR MINUTES.(from Boston Communications Group's wireless carriers)(Brief Article)
February 8, 2002... Boston Communications Group Inc. has signed a deal with ATM operator E*trade Group Inc., of Menlo Park, CA., to offer prepaid wireless minutes through its network of 11,000 ATMs. Cellular telephone users would charge the purchases to their ATM...

CONSUMERS GIVE THUMBS UP TO PREPAID CARDS.(survey of adults)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
February 8, 2002... In a telephone survey of 1,006 adults last October and November, 47% of respondents said they had purchased a proprietary prepaid merchant gift card, while 47% of respondents said they had received one, says Genie Driskill, chief operating...

MBNA PROMOTES TWO VETERANS TO KEY POSTS AT MBNA BANK.(John R. Cochran; Bruce L. Hammonds)(Brief Article)
February 8, 2002... MBNA Corp., the Wilmington, DE-based issuer, has promoted Chief Operating Officer Bruce L. Hammonds, 54, to chairman of MBNA America Bank N.A., an MBNA spokesperson tells CardLine today. The No. 2 issuer also named Chief Marketing Officer John...

GOMEZ SAYS CITIBANK HAS BEST CARD WEB SITE.(Gomex Advisors, Citigroup's Citbank card Web site)(Brief Article)
February 8, 2002... Citigroup Inc.'s Citibank card Web site earned the top overall ranking in the Gomez.com Spring 2002 Scorecard of large issuers', Web sites. Citi's site was best for transactors and for Internet savvy cardholders, according to the Waltham,...

NATIONAL BANK OF CANADA ISSUES VARIABLE-RATE CARD.(Syncro MasterCard)(Brief Article)
February 8, 2002... National Bank of Canada has launched the Syncro MasterCard, a variable- rate credit card. The card's annual interest rate is tied to Canada's prime rate, which is currently 3.75%. The bank adds another four percentage points for a total of...

CERTEGY PROCESSING CARIBBEAN BANK'S CARD PORTFOLIO.(Banco Dominicano del Progreso S.A.)(Brief Article)
February 8, 2002... Certegy Inc., the Alpharetta, GA-based card processor, announced today that it has completed conversion of Banco Dominicano del Progreso S.A.'s 146,000- account Visa, MasterCard and private-label card portfolio to Certegy's own platform....

CITI COMMERCE SIGNS AGREEMENT WITH FRED MEYER.(Citi Commerce Solutions, Fred Meyer Jewelers)(Brief Article)
February 8, 2002... The Citi Commerce Solutions division of Citigroup Inc.'s Citibank will manage the the private-label program of Fred Meyer Jewelers, the fourth largest jewelry store nationwide with 436 stores in 33 states. Portland, OR-based Fred Meyer is a...

PULSE COMPLETES MERGER WITH TYME.(Brief Article)
February 8, 2002... The Pulse electronic funds transfer network, of Houston, and the TYME EFT network, of Brown Deer, WI, have formally merged, Pulse CEO Stan Paur announced last week. About 95% of TYME's shareholders approved the deal, according to Paur. The...

TIDEL CEO TEMPORARILY STEPS DOWN CITING HEALTH REASONS.(Tidel Technologies Inc., James T. Rash)(Brief Article)
February 8, 2002... James T. Rash, CEO of Tidel Technologies Inc., the Houston ATM maker, is taking a leave of absence for health reasons, company officials said today. Tidel Chief Operating Officer Mark K. Levenick will temporarily replace Rash as interim CEO....

JUDGE ISSUES STAY IN DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE ANTITRUST DECISION.(Barbara Jones, MasterCard International Inc., Visa International, Visa U.S.A. Inc.)(Brief Article)
February 8, 2002... U.S. District Court Judge Barbara Jones this afternoon issued a stay pending appeals on her October antitrust ruling against MasterCard International, Visa U.S.A. and Visa International. "This court believes that the defendants have...

PAYPAL'S STOCK WILL BE PRICED TONIGHT FOR TOMORROW'S SALE.(Brief Article)
February 8, 2002... PayPal Inc.'s stock will be priced tonight, the evening before shares of the Palo Alto, CA-based electronic-currency provider, are scheduled to begin active trading, a Wall Street source familiar with the offering tells CardLine today. PayPal...

TYME MEMBERS ASSUME PULSE RATE STRUCTURE.(Brief Article)
February 8, 2002... As a result of the completion of the merger of the Pulse and TYME electronic funds transfer networks, former TYME members assumed Pulse's pricing policies Feb. 1. The policies include ATM and point-of-sale interchange rates. Under TYME's...

CARD ISSUERS SLOW TO RESPOND TO E-MAIL INQUIRIES.(credit cards)(Brief Article)
February 8, 2002... It took 10 major card issuers an average of 21.2 hours to respond to e- mails requesting information in January, according to a survey by Annapolis, MD- based Incoming Calls Management Institute, a consulting, publishing and training firm....

COLLECTIONS VENDORS MERGE.(E-Debt Financial Services Inc., CollectionsX.com, eDebt)(Brief Article)
February 8, 2002... Akron, OH-based E-Debt and Atlanta-based CollectionsX have merged to form eDebt, the largest online exchange for trading distressed debt, executives of both companies told CardLine editors Tuesday. Charged-off card receivables accounted for...

TRUSTASIA LAUNCHES WEBNUM.(Brief Article)
February 8, 2002... TrustAsia Pte Ltd., a Singapore-based provider of digital trust services, today launched WebNum, a service designed to facilitate mobile-commerce purchases with credit cards. WebNum requires cellular-telephone users to enter fewer numeric...

FEWER CARD ISSUERS TIGHTEN CREDIT CONTROLS.(Brief Article)
February 8, 2002... Slightly fewer credit card issuing banks are taking measures to tighten credit standards than in late 2001, according to the Federal Reserve Board's latest Senior Loan Officer Opinion Survey. Results from the Fed's January survey, released...

MASTERCARD SIGNS AGREEMENT TO BECOME PULSE SWITCH.(MasterCard International Inc.)(Brief Article)
February 8, 2002... The Houston-based Pulse electronic funds transfer network and MasterCard International today announced the signing of a letter of intent for MasterCard to provide Pulse with switching and settlement services. Subject to both organizations...

FIRST DATA BRINGS MASTERCARD TO CANADIAN VISA ACQUIRER.(First Data Loan Co., Visa Desjardins)(Brief Article)
February 8, 2002... First Data Loan Company, Canada, First Data Merchant Services' Canadian independent sales organization, will acquire MasterCard transactions for Visa Desjardins, Quebec's largest Visa merchant acquirer, Martin Rey, Visa Desjardins' product...

PAYPAL'S FIRST DAY OF TRADING BLOCKED BY LAWSUIT.(patent suit by PayPal Inc.)(Brief Article)
February 8, 2002... A patent-infringement lawsuit apparently has blocked PayPal Inc.'s first day of trading today on the NASDAQ Stock Market Inc. CertCo Inc., a New York- based company, alleges in a Delaware federal court infringement of its patent for the...

REVOLVING CREDIT'S GROWTH GOES NEGATIVE.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
February 8, 2002... Growth in revolving credit reversed course in December, with 2001 ending with the lowest growth rate in more than five years. Seasonally adjusted revolving credit outstandings contracted at an annualized rate of 14.2% in December following a...

MANY AMERICANS USE CARDS TO PAY DAILY BILLS.(credit cards)(Brief Article)
February 8, 2002... Some 24% of Americans who added debt in January are living off their credit cards to buy groceries and to pay other daily expenses, according today's issue of the Cambridge Consumer Credit Index survey. "They are using their credit cards to pay...

U.S./CANADA SMART CARD SHIPMENTS GREW BY 79%.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
February 8, 2002... Smart card shipments to the United States and Canada grew from 14.8 million in the first half of 2001 to 26.5 million in the second half of the year, a 79% increase, according to a study conducted by the New York City-based Smart Card Alliance....

PREPAID ATM ROLLS DICE ON ONLINE GAMBLING.(PrePaidATM Inc.'s advertising)(Brief Article)
February 8, 2002... Notices for the PrePaidATM Inc. electronic payment service have begun popping up at online gaming sites in response to Visa U.S.A.'s and MasterCard International's efforts to curtail the use of their cards for online gaming by American...

OCC CLOSES NEXTCARD'S NEXTBANK.(United States. Office of the Comptroller of the Currency)(Brief Article)
February 8, 2002... The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, regulator of national banks, late Thursday closed NextBank NA, the Phoenix-based wholly owned subsidiary of online card issuer NextCard Inc., after determining that NextCard executives could not...

WHAT'S NEXT FOR NEXTCARD?(NextCard Inc., NextBank N.A.)(Brief Article)
February 8, 2002... The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency's decision Thursday to close NextBank NA only affects the bank, not its parent, NextCard Inc. But in a terse statement issued after midnight, NextCard executives said the company "will re- evaluate...

NEXTBANK'S CARD BONDS FACE UNCERTAINTY.(Brief Article)
February 8, 2002... According to Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. filings, Phoenix-based NextBank NA had sold $1.26 billion of securitized credit card receivables as of last June 30, the most recent period for which numbers were immediately available. Industry...

FDIC WILL ENSURE THAT NEXTCARD'S CARDS ARE HONORED.(United States. Federal Deposit Insurance Corp., credit cards)(Brief Article)
February 8, 2002... The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp., which has been appointed receiver of shuttered NextCard Bank NA, will ensure that the credit cards of NextCard Inc.'s one million Visa cardholders continue to be honored, a FDIC spokesperson tells CardLine...

BANK ONE HIRED TO SELL NEXTCARD PORTFOLIO.(gets contract from Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.)(Brief Article)
February 8, 2002... The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. has hired Bank One Corp. as a consultant to sell NextCard Inc.'s portfolio of one million cardholder accounts, a FDIC spokesperson tells CardLine today. "We determined that this was the most cost- effective...

FDIC TO MAIL CHECKS MONDAY TO NEXTBANK DEPOSITORS.(United States. Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.)(Brief Article)
February 8, 2002... The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp., which insures bank deposits up to $100,000, will begin mailing checks Monday to depositors of the failed NextBank NA of Phoenix. The bank has $700 million in assets and $554 million in deposits. The bank...

PROVIDIAN REPORTS $481.2 MILLION FOURTH-QUARTER LOSS.(Providian Financial Corp.)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
February 8, 2002... Providian Financial Corp. late yesterday reported a $481.2 million loss in the fourth quarter, compared with a profit of $214 million in 2000's fourth quarter. Providian executives also announced some details of a plan approved by banking...

VISA TO IMPLEMENT TIERED INTERLINK PRICING.(Visa U.S.A. Inc.)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
February 15, 2002... Visa U.S.A. will implement an interchange policy for its Interlink PIN- based debit point-of-sale network in which certain merchant categories and retailers that meet certain volume tiers will receive discounts off the new standard Interlink...

CONCORD MUM ON ANY CHANGES IN ITS RATE-HIKE PLANS.(Conford EFS Inc.)(Brief Article)
February 15, 2002... While Visa U.S.A. is altering its interchange rate plans somewhat, Concord EFS Inc., the Memphis, TN-based owner of Star, the nation's leading electronic funds transfer network, has not made any announcements concerning changes in its plans for...

THIRD CIRCUIT COURT OF APPEALS RULES AGAINST FLEET.(FleetBoston Financial Corp.; bait-and-switch tactic)(Brief Article)
February 15, 2002... The U.S. Third Circuit Court of Appeals in Philadelphia ruled this morning that cardholders can sue card issuers for violation of the federal Truth in Lending Act. Today's ruling reverses an earlier U.S. District Court decision. The case...

VISA PLANS TO DOUBLE SMART CARD ISSUERS IN 2003.(Brief Article)
February 15, 2002... Visa U.S.A. expects to have eight credit card issuers deploying Smart Visa cards by this time next year, Diana Knox, senior vice president of smart card applications and development for Visa tells CardFax/CardLine today. Currently, First USA,...

PAYPAL'S PRICING OF STOCK FOR IPO IS DAY-TO-DAY.(Brief Article)
February 15, 2002... PayPal Inc., the Palo Alto, CA-based electronic-currency provider, may price shares of its stock sometime this week for trading on the Nasdaq Stock Market Inc., but it's not a certainty. "It's day-to-day," says a spokesperson for Citigroup...

CAB CARD PAYMENTS SET A RECORD FOR APPROVAL AT THE OLYMPICS.(Ute Cab uses card swipe-equipped meters)(Brief Article)
February 15, 2002... Tourists attending the 2002 Olympic Winter Games in Salt Lake City can pull out their credit cards to pay for rides if they use Ute Cab Co. Some 80 of Ute's cabs are equipped with Pulsar Taxi Meters that have a card swipe and a wireless modem....

ATM DEPLOYMENTS EXPECTED TO GROW IN EUROPE.(retail locations)(Brief Article)
February 15, 2002... A new study predicts a healthy market for ATM deployments in retail locations throughout Europe as consumer demand for convenient access to cash and other services at ATMs grow. The Mountain View, CA-based Frost & Sullivan consultancy predicts...

DOUBLE-DIGIT DEBIT GROWTH CONTINUES.(debit card transactions)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
February 15, 2002... Offline, or signature-based, debit card transactions during the first nine months of 2001 totaled 4.8 billion, up 26.3% from 3.8 billion during the same period the previous year, according to new data compiled by ATM&Debit News, a CardLine...

CONCORD EFS NET INCOME UP MORE THAN 36%.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
February 15, 2002... Concord EFS Inc., the Memphis, TN-based card and merchant processor and owner of the nation's largest shared electronic funds transfer network, Star, today reported net income for the fourth quarter ended Dec. 31 of $89.8 million, or 17 cents...

FIRST USA RE-BRANDING TO BANK ONE.(Brief Article)
February 15, 2002... First USA, the Wilmington, DE-based card-issuing arm of Bank One Corp., will begin phasing out the First USA name over the next few months and re-brand itself Bank One, says a First USA spokesperson confirming a story CardLine reported last...

BRITNEY SPEARS WOOS FANS WITH SMART CARDS.(Brief Article)
February 15, 2002... Pop singer and fledgling actress Britney Spears is offering her fans loyalty-oriented smart cards that will give them exclusive access to behind-the- scenes videos and photos, as well as to promotional offers. The singer's Web site,...

BOYS CAN HAVE FUN WITH CHIP CARDS, TOO.(StatCard Entertainment's XAction Skate chip card)(Brief Article)
February 15, 2002... While Britney Spears offers smart cards to her largely pre-teen girl fan base, another company has launched a smart card for video game-happy boys. Norwalk, CT-based StatCard Entertainment Inc. began selling its XAction Skate chip card at the...

IDINE EEKS OUT A PROFIT.(reports figures for quarter ending December 31, 2001)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
February 15, 2002... Despite the marked downturn in travel-and-entertainment spending in late 2001, iDine Rewards Network Inc. today reported gross dining sales of $50.63 million for the quarter ending Dec. 31, up 15% from $43.98 million in the same year-earlier...

EURONET CUTS FOURTH-QUARTER LOSS.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
February 15, 2002... Euronet Wordwide Inc., the Leawood, KS-based electronic financial- transactions company, Monday reported a fourth-quarter net loss of $575,000 compared with a net loss of $11.99 million for the same three-month period in 2000. Revenues reached...