Cardline articles from July 2005

Cardline archives from July 2005

WASHINGTON MUTUAL IS REPLACING 1,400 DEBIT CARDS AS RESULT OF THE BREACH.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... Washington Mutual, the nation's largest savings and loan, is in the process of replacing 1,400 Visa USA-branded cards that were compromised during the data breach at CardSystems Solutions Inc., a Washington Mutual spokesperson tells CardLine...

DATA BREACH HAS MADE CONSUMERS WARY ABOUT SHOPPING ONLINE.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... Two surveys this week suggest that the weekly reports of consumer data theft and loss are causing consumers to cast a wary eye on the Internet as a device for communications, online banking and shopping. The Conference Board, a New York-based...

RSA SIGNS UP U.S. BANKS FOR TWO-FACTOR AUTHENTICATION.(American Bank and Trust Company of Pennsylvania, RSA Security Inc., Stonebridge Bank)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... RSA Security Inc. has signed up two Pennsylvania-based banks to offer its SecurID two-factor authentication technology to their Internet banking customers. American Bank, which is based in Allentown, and Stonebridge Bank, which is based in West...

IN THE WAKE OF A CLASS-ACTION LAWSUIT, VISA DEFENDS INTERCHANGE.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... Visa USA defended interchange late yesterday in a statement released in response to the class-action lawsuit filed Wednesday by five small and mid-sized merchants challenging the credit card interchange policies of Visa, MasterCard...

VISA'S ADVANCED AUTHORIZATION MAY HAVE AN ADVANTAGE OVER MASTERCARD'S RISKFINDER.
July 1, 2005... Visa's new authorization-level credit and debit card fraud detection system gives it a slight edge over MasterCard's fraud detection system, according to some industry experts. How much of a difference that makes to issuers might vary. Visa...

ATM FEES CONTINUE TO INCREASE.(automated teller machines)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... ATM foreign fees and ATM surcharges continue to rise because they have become reliable sources of revenue for banks, according to a Bankrate.com study. Foreign fees, or the fees that banks charge their customers for using competitor's ATMs,...

NEW CO-OP CEO DOESN'T ANTICIPATE CHANGE, BUT PREDICTS GROWTH.(Stanley C. Hollen)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... Stanley C. Hollen, who took over this month as CEO of the CO-OP Network, says there won't be any major changes at the Ontairo, CA-based company, but he expects significant membership growth. Hollen, who took over as CEO of the nation's largest...

FIRST DATA SIGNS LONG-TERM CONTRACT TO PROCESS FORMER SEARS CARD PORTFOLIO.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... First Data Corp. announced late this afternoon that it has signed a long-term contract with Citigroup Inc. to process the former Sears, Roebuck and Co. private-label card portfolio. The agreement takes the business away from First Data rival...

VISA CANADA SCHEDULES MAJOR SMART CARD TRIAL FOR 2007.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... Visa Canada will conduct a major test involving smart cards in two Toronto suburbs beginning in 2007, says Oliver Manahan, senior manager emerging technologies and chip initiatives at Visa Canada. Visa Canada, whose members include the...

VISA CANADA CERTIFIES MONERIS FOR SETTLING SMART CARD TRANSACTIONS.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... Visa Canada has certified Moneris Solutions Corp. as the first Canadian processor to settle transactions that comply with the worldwide smart card standard, EMV (Europay/MasterCard/Visa), Moneris tells CardLine today. EMV is a standard for...

MONERIS CEO PERFORMS CANADA'S FIRST EMV TRANSACTION.(europay/mastercard/visa, Jim Baumgartner)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... Jim Baumgartner, president and CEO of Canadian processor Moneris Solutions Corp., today demonstrated that some Canadian stores are ready to accept chip cards. Baumgartner used his Visa card to partly carry out a transaction that complies with...

BOEING EMPLOYEES CREDIT UNION WILL REPLACE 48,000 CARDS.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... Boeing Employees Credit Union is replacing 48,000 of its members' credit and debit cards after learning the cards were compromised by the security breach at CardSystems Solutions Inc. The credit union, which is based in Tukwila, WA, is...

DELOITTE WARNS OF INTERNAL ATTACKS AGAINST BANKS.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... Internal attacks on information-technology systems are overtaking external attacks at the world's largest financial institutions, according to the 2005 Global Security Survey by Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu. Deloitte's survey of senior IT...

TNB ANNOUNCES THREE NEW PROCESSING AGREEMENTS.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... TNB Card Services today announced credit card-processing agreements with three credit unions. Dallas-based TNB will process cards WySouth Federal Credit Union in Wyandotte, MI; Dowell Federal Credit Union in Tulsa, OK; and Shell Federal Credit...

AMERICAN EXPRESS ANNOUNCES A REORGANIZATION.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... American Express Co. Chairman and CEO Kenneth Chenualt last week announced a reorganization and management changes as the company prepares to spin off American Express Financial Advisors. The spin-off, scheduled for completion in September,...

METRIS WILL MAKE PREPAYMENT.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... Subprime credit card issuer Metris Companies Inc. recently announced that it will make an optional $30 million prepayment on its unsecured 10.125% senior notes a year early. Minnetonka, MN-based Metris notified the notes' trustee last week of...

AMEX BANK CANADA AD FEATURING TIGER WOODS DEBUTS TODAY.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... Tiger Woods makes his first appearance in a TV ad for American Express Canada tonight. Woods is participating in AmEx's "My life, My card" campaign, in which celebrities talk about the role AmEx cards play in their lives. "Since the campaign...

FDIC SAYS BANKS NEED TO PROTECT CUSTOMERS.(Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... With fraudsters finding more ways to steal identities and hijack bank accounts, financial institutions need to take steps to protect consumers, according to a report from the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. "The widespread use of user ID and...

CREDIT CARD LOAN-DELINQUENCY RATE FALLS AGAIN.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... During this year's first quarter ended March 31, a seasonally adjusted rate of 4.03% of the nation's credit card accounts were delinquent, down from 4.21% that were overdue during the same period last year, according to the American Bankers...

LOS ANGELES GROCER TO OFFER PREPAID DEBIT CARDS.(Super A Foods Inc.)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... Super A Foods in Los Angeles doesn't have any experience offering its customers loyalty or prepaid debit cards, but then its customers don't have much experience using them either. The chain of 12 grocery stores this week will begin offering a...

AVENTA TO USE POS SERVICES FROM RBS LYNK.(point-of-sale, )(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... Phoenix-based Aventa Data Systems Inc., which distributes point-of-sale terminals and systems, will use payment-processing technology from Atlanta-based RBS Lynk, according to an announcement from RBS. The processing system from RBS will speed...

AIR CANADA SELLS STAKE IN AEROPLAN.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... Montreal-based Ace Aviation Holdings, Inc., Air Canada's parent company, sold a 12.5% stake in its Aeroplan customer loyalty program, making C$250 million (US$202 million) in the process. The deal marks the first time an airline has held an...

CONTACTLESS ON DISPLAY AT CANADIAN SHOW.(Mint Inc.)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... Mint Inc. distributed Prepaid MasterCard PayPass cards at ACT Canada's Cardware 2005 show yesterday. Attendees could try out the card and complete transactions on site. Mint Inc, a subsidiary of Toronto-based Mint Technology Corp. launched...

FIRST DATA EXTENDS CONTRACT WITH BANCORPSOUTH.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... First Data Corp. has announced it will provide merchant processing services for BancorpSouth Inc.'s 4,000 merchants. First Data, based in Greenwood Village, CO already provides transaction processing for Tupelo, MS-based BancorpSouth's 90,000...

HYPERCOM CUTS JOBS AS PART OF A REORGANIZATION; ANALYSTS PRAISE THE MOVE.
July 1, 2005... Hypercom Corp., a Phoenix-based payment-terminal manufacturer, will cut more than 100 jobs worldwide, including 21 senior management positions, the company announced today. The cuts will be finalized tomorrow, Hypercom said. The reorganization...

MONERIS WILL BEGIN TESTING EMV-COMPLIANT PAYMENT TERMINALS NEXT MONTH.(Europay/MasterCard/Visa)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... Moneris, the Canadian processor, says it will begin a technical trial July 11 of point-of-sale terminals that comply with the worldwide smart card standard, EMV (Europay/MasterCard/Visa). "We will be installing the terminals at a small number...

ATTORNEYS GENERAL DEMAND ANSWERS FROM CARDSYSTEMS SOLUTIONS.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... A letter signed by 44 state attorneys general has been sent to card processor CardSystems Solutions Inc. asking the firm to explain how its system was breached. The breach compromised card data of 40 million cardholders (CardLine, 6/20). In...

NEW YORK FIGHTS CARD FRAUD WITH ZIP CODES.(New York City Liquidators Company Inc.)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... New York City Transit is testing address verification software in a bid to reduce credit card fraud at its MetroCard ticket vending machines. "We are running the pilot at three of our stations," a New York City Transit spokesperson tells...

STUDY: ARC GROWTH WILL SOON PLATEAU.(accounts receivable conversion )(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... A payments consulting group predicts that the growth of account receivable conversion payments will plateau by 2008 as consumers pay fewer bills with paper checks and more with credit and debit cards and other electronic payments. The rules for...

TELECHECK RENEWS CONTRACT WITH NEIMAN MARCUS.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... First Data Corp. today announced that it has renewed its agreement to provide its TeleCheck Guarantee service to all 55 Neiman Marcus Group Inc.'s store locations. "We have decided to continue our relationship with First Data because TeleCheck...

NEW EDGE NETWORKS RECEIVES VISA CERTIFICATION.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... New Edge Networks says the broadband data networks it builds for merchants have been certified by Visa USA as compliant with payment card industry standards for securing cardholder information. The firm says it has already received compliance...

BANK OF AMERICA WILL BUY MBNA FOR $35 BILLION.
July 1, 2005... Bank of America Corp. this morning announced that it will buy MBNA Corp. in a stock and cash deal valued at $35 billion. The deal combines two of the nation's five-largest card issuers, creating an entity with $143.2 billion in receivables....

SLOW GROWTH LED MBNA TO SEEK A BUYER.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... MBNA Corp.'s slow growth and reliance on the direct-mail marketing of credit cards led it to seek a buyer. "Our growth was at 2% to 3%. We needed to diversify internationally and in products," Bruce L. Hammonds, MBNA's president and CEO, told...

DEAL VAULTS BOFA/MBNA COMBO TO THE TOP.(BankAmerica Corp.)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... Bank of America's $35 billion purchase of MBNA, the nation's third-largest credit card issuer, will move the combination to the number-one position among credit card companies. According to a U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission filing, the...

NEW ENTITY WILL LEVERAGE SIZE WITH VISA AND MASTERCARD.(MasterCard International Inc., Bank of America Corp., Visa Canada, MBNA Corp.)
July 1, 2005... The massive credit card business that will be formed from the combination of Bank of America Corp. and MBNA Corp. would have significant leverage with Visa and MasterCard International, but no changes in those relationships are in the offing....

TSYS COULD BECOME ONE OF THE ACQUISITION'S BIG WINNERS.(Total System Services Inc.)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... Processor Total System Services Inc. is expected to come out a big winner in Bank of America's $35 billion deal to purchase MBNA Corp., Timothy Willi, an equity analyst, who follows processors for A.G. Edwards, tells CardLine. In January, TSYS,...

DEAL GIVES BOFA BIG FOOTHOLD IN CANADA.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... Bank of America's purchase of MBNA will give BofA a big foothold in Canada's credit card market. MBNA Canada, the Ottawa-based subsidiary of MBNA, is the country's second-largest MasterCard issuer (CardLine, 4/29). MBNA Canada reported that...

ACQUISITION GIVES MBNA A STABLE SOURCE OF FUNDING.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... With credit card growth flat in the United States, access to more diverse funding and lower borrowing costs have made depository banks more attractive mates for monolines. Bank of America expects its acquisition of MBNA will create a $180...

WACHOVIA DECIDED AGAINST BUYING MBNA.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... Wachovia Corp. said today that it had considered buying MBNA Corp., but the Charlotte, NC-based bank decided against it. Wachovia said in a statement that it "studied the... companies in the industry and considered re-entering the card...

AMEX CANADA, AEROPLAN LAUNCH CORPORATE CARD.(Air Canada, Amex Bank of Canada)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... Amex Bank of Canada and Air Canada's Aeroplan loyalty scheme have launched the American Express AeroplanPlus Corporate Platinum card. Companies will receive up to 4% cash back on Air Canada travel purchases made with the card, Amex says. They...

AMEX WILL HAVE TO COURT BOFA TO KEEP CARD-ISSUING RELATIONSHIP WITH MBNA.(American Express Co. to file lawsuit against Bank of America Corp. regarding the continuation of relationship)(Brief Article)
July 8, 2005... The intertwined relationships of the payments industry puts pressure on American Express Co. to court competitor Bank of America Corp., following BofA's purchase of MBNA Corp., John Gould, director of the bank cards practice at TowerGroup, a...

CARDSYSTEMS' BREACH MAY HAVE BREATHED LIFE INTO FRAUD CENTER PROPOSAL.(Fair Isaac Corp. puts forward a proposal to prevent credit card fraud)(Brief Article)
July 8, 2005... Fair Isaac Corp., the Minneapolis-based credit analysis fraud-detection company, hopes the recent breach at CardSystems Solutions Inc. will revive federal interest in Fair Isaac's proposed national identity theft prevention center. Under Fair...

CITIBANK WORKS ON A WAY TO GET ITS CUSTOMERS TO OPEN THEIR E-MAILS.(AT&T Universal Card Services Corp.)(Brief Article)
July 8, 2005... Citibank's AT&T Universal credit card will include a personal header on all e-mails it sends to cardholders, as a way to fight phishing, according to e-mails it is sending to cardholders. The header includes the cardholder's first and last name...

THIEVES STEAL FTC CHAIRMAN'S CARD DATA IN DSW HACKING.(Federal Trade Commission's Deborah Platt Majoras became a victim of a credit card fraud, DSW Shoe Warehouse's database hacked)(Brief Article)
July 8, 2005... Deborah Platt Majoras, chairman of the Federal Trade Commission, a government agency charged with helping individuals fight identity theft, is herself a victim of the crime. Majoras received a letter last week from DSW Shoe Warehouse, a...

ECOUNT OFFERS PREPAID CARD WITH A LESSON IN FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT FOR TEENS.(repaid Visa card for teenagers launched)(Brief Article)
July 8, 2005... Ecount, a Conshohocken, PA-based stored-value card company, has launched a prepaid Visa card for teenagers to help them learn money-management skills. "We basically saw financial literacy (in teens) as a growing epidemic," Mark Harrington,...

NCR SETTLES LAWSUIT.(Tecniflex agreed to pay license fees )(Brief Article)
July 8, 2005... ATM manufacturer NCR Corp. has settled its lawsuit against Tecniflex, a Republic, MO-based maintenance provider. NCR, which is based in Dayton, OH, charged that Tecniflex either stole or misused some of NCR's diagnostic software and manuals for...

RESTAURANTS WILL SAMPLE CONTACTLESS VISA CARD.(Yum! Brands Inc. to deploy contactless payment technology of Visa USA Inc. at its restaurants )(Brief Article)
July 8, 2005... Yum! Brands Inc., whose subsidiaries include KFC, Pizza Hut, Long John Silvers and Taco Bell, has joined with Visa to test contactless payments. Contactless technology will be piloted at an unspecified number of the company's Atlanta-area...

GLOBAL PAYMENTS SIGNS CONTRACT WITH FTD.(FTD Group Inc.)(Brief Article)
July 8, 2005... Merchant processor Global Payments Inc. announced yesterday that it had signed a multi-year agreement to process transactions for member florists of FTD Group Inc. FTD says it is the leading provider of floral-related products and services to...

MEXICAN BANKS PLAN TO BOOST CARD ACCEPTANCE AT SMALL RETAILERS.(Brief Article)
July 8, 2005... Mexican banks plan to boost acceptance of credit and debit cards by the country's small retailers, and the banks are digging into their own deep pockets to make it happen. The Association of Mexican Banks today announced that its members will...

BOFA/MBNA COMBO WILL INCREASE ITS CLOUT ON CAPITOL HILL.(Bank of America Corp. and MBNA Corp.'s merger forecast)(Brief Article)
July 8, 2005... A combined Bank of America Corp. and MBNA Corp. will become one of the major players on Capitol Hill, according to an analysis of their previous campaign contributions. The Center for Responsive Politics, an independent monitor of campaign...

DIEBOLD AGREES TO SELL CAMPUS CARD SYSTEMS FOR $38 MILLION.(CBORD Group Inc. acquires card business of ATM manufacturer)(Brief Article)
July 8, 2005... ATM manufacturer Diebold Inc. today announced that it has signed a definitive agreement to sell its campus card business to the Cbord Group Inc. for $38 million. Students use the cards to make on- and off-campus purchases, to gain access to...

PSCU SIGNS PROCESSING AGREEMENT.(PSCU Financial Services signs contract with People's Trust Federal Union )(Brief Article)
July 8, 2005... PSCU Financial Services, the St. Petersburg, FL, credit union service organization, has signed a long-term contract to process debit and credit cards for People's Trust Federal Union of Houston. PSCU will convert 18,000 debit accounts for...

EFUNDS COMPLETES PURCHASE OF WILDCARD SYSTEMS.(Brief Article)
July 8, 2005... Payments processor eFunds Corp. says it has completed its acquisition of WildCard Systems Inc. eFunds announced last month that it had agreed to buy the Sunrise, FL-based prepaid and stored-value card provider for $228.8 million (CardLine,...

TRM'S CONTRACT WITH AMF GETS TRM INTO THE LEISURE MARKET.(AMF Bowling Centers Inc.'s contract)(Brief Article)
July 8, 2005... TRM Corp. today announced that is has signed an agreement with AMF Bowling Centers Inc. to deploy more than 325 ATMs at bowling centers throughout the United States. The contract marks Portland, OR-based TRM's entrance into the large leisure...

INTERNATIONAL CARD ESTABLISHMENT LAUNCHES WHOLESALE-PROCESSING SERVICE.(International Card Establishment Inc. signs agreement with Foresite Merchant Solutions Inc.)(Brief Article)
July 8, 2005... International Card Establishment Inc. has signed an agreement to handle all of the credit card processing for Foresite Merchant Solutions Inc., a Midland, TX-based independent sales organization, which provides payment card services to small...

TRANSFIRST NAMES VP OF BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT.(Paul Oswald, vice president )(Brief Article)
July 8, 2005... Transaction processor TransFirst recently announced that it named Paul Oswald vice president of business development for its independent sales services division. Oswald has held sales management positions at American Express Co. and Nova...

TRANSACTION STOCKS DOWN IN JUNE.(Data processing services' stock performance analysis)(Brief Article)
July 8, 2005... The stocks of the 11 major transaction processors recorded a negative average return of -0.34% in June and -0.01% in the second quarter, according to Barrington Research's monthly price performance study of the group. The Chicago-based...

MCDONALD'S AD PROMOTES MASTERCARD PAYPASS.(MasterCard International Inc., advertisements)(Brief Article)
July 8, 2005... More issuers and merchants will embrace the MasterCard PayPass contactless card, and major marketing campaigns will begin to introduce the new tap-and-go concept to U.S. consumers, Fiamma Morton, vice president of business development for the...

MASTERCARD OFFERS CONSUMERS A HIDEAWAY.(MasterCard International Inc. provides hoteling and lodging services from Hideaways International Inc.)(Brief Article)
July 8, 2005... MasterCard International is offering its affluent cardholders more perks with special deals from the Hideaway Collection, Purchase, NY-based MasterCard announced today. Portsmouth, NH-based Hideaways International Inc. offers upscale lodgings,...

METACA, OBERTHUR ANNOUNCE CANADIAN SMART CARD DEAL.(Oberthur Card Systems)(Brief Article)
July 8, 2005... Canada-based card manufacturer Metaca Corp. is working with France-based smart card vendor Oberthur Card Systems to make smart cards for Canadian banks, Metaca has announced. Metaca currently supplies magnetic stripe cards to Canadian banks and...

GEMPLUS CARD PASSES PAYPASS HURDLE.(MasterCard International Inc. approves new technology from Gemplus International S.A.)(Brief Article)
July 8, 2005... MasterCard International has certified a new card for contactless payments from France-based Gemplus International S.A., Gemplus says. The GemInstant PayPass smart card incorporates a chip and antenna embedded in the card body. When tapped...

VITAL APPROVES HYPERCOM SOFTWARE.(Vital Processing Services L.L.C)(Brief Article)
July 8, 2005... Vital Processing Services has approved the latest point-of-sale terminal software from Phoenix-based Hypercom Corp. Retailers that use the Tempe, AZ-based processor can now use the latest edition of Hypercom's HyperWare point-of-sale software....

FIFTH THIRD PROCESSING INKS DEAL.(Fifth Third Processing Solutions Inc., Britton and Koontz First National Bank)(Brief Article)
July 8, 2005... Britton & Koontz Bank N.A. has entered into a five-year contract with Fifth Third Processing Solutions. As part of the deal Fifth Third will manage the bank's electronic funds transfer services, which includes providing gateway access, debit...

NCO GROUP AGREES TO BUY RISK MANAGEMENT ALTERNATIVES FOR $118.8 MILLION.(Brief Article)
July 8, 2005... NCO Group Inc., an accounts receivables management giant, will purchase key competitor Risk Management Alternatives Inc. for $118.8 million in cash, a move that will strengthen Horsham, PA.-based NCO's position as the largest collections firm....

MASTERCARD'S PIN-DEBIT VOLUME GROWS SHARPLY.(MasterCard International Inc.)(Brief Article)
July 8, 2005... MasterCard International today announced that purchase volumes on MasterCard-branded, PIN-debit cards grew at an unprecedented pace. Volumes for online, PIN-debit transactions through MasterCard, including through the association's PIN-based...

FEDERAL GOVERNMENT SOLICITING BIDS FOR A MERCHANT ACQUIRER.(Department of the Treasury's Financial Management Service)(Brief Article)
July 8, 2005... Merchant acquirers, Uncle Sam needs you. The U.S. government began soliciting bids today from merchant acquirers seeking to process the 50 million credit and debit card payments worth $5 billion annually it receives for fees, fines, sales,...

BLACKBERRY INVENTOR TO APPEAR IN AMEX CANADA ADS.(Amex Bank Canada endorses Mike Lazaridis)(Brief Article)
July 8, 2005... Amex Bank Canada has hired Mike Lazaridis, the Canadian inventor of the Blackberry handheld communicator, as the local celebrity for the Canadian version of the American Express "My life, My card" advertising campaign. The campaign shows...

TRANSACTION SYSTEMS ARCHITECTS BUYS S2.(acquisition of S2 Systems Inc.)(Brief Article)
July 8, 2005... Omaha, NE-based Transaction Systems Architects Inc. has acquired S2 Systems, a Plano, TX-based electronic payments software developer, for $35 million in cash. S2 will be integrated into TSA, and Lynn Holland, S2's chief technology officer,...

INFICORP BUYS CREDIT-UNION CARD PORTFOLIO.(Royal Oakland Community Credit Union)(Brief Article)
July 8, 2005... InfiCorp has purchased the credit card portfolio of Royal Oakland Community Credit Union in Royal Oak, MI, through a deal facilitated by Brookwood Capital of Peterborough, NH. As of March 31, the credit union had 4,000 credit card accounts and...

TSYS AND NAVY FEDERAL RENEW CARD-PROCESSING AGREEMENT.(Total System Services Inc., Navy Federal Credit Union)(Brief Article)
July 8, 2005... Processor Total System Services Inc. has renewed its contract with Navy Federal Credit Union to provide card processing for Navy Federal's more than 1 million card accounts. Navy Federal has been a TSYS client since 2000, and the contract...

TO ITS CREDIT, DEBIT IS MAKING AN IMPACT ONLINE.(Visa U.S.A. Inc.'s debit cards)(Brief Article)
July 15, 2005... Visa debit cards' online-transaction volume topped comparable volume of their sister credit cards for the first time ever in the first quarter, Visa says. Cardholders used Visa's signature-based Check card for 52% of online transactions...

CARDSYSTEMS HIRES AUDITOR.(CardSystems Solutions Inc. and Ambiron TrustWave)(Brief Article)
July 15, 2005... CardSystems Solutions Inc., which is at the center of the world's biggest card-security breach, has hired Ambiron TrustWave as its auditor to bring CardSystems into compliance with Visa USA's and MasterCard International's standards. Ambiron...

HSBC CLEARS HART-SCOTT-RODINO IN PURCHASE OF CARD PORTFOLIO.(HSBC Holdings PLC, Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act of 1976)(Brief Article)
July 15, 2005... The federal government has approved HSBC North America's Retail Services Division's purchase of the private-label card portfolios owned by Neiman Marcus Group Inc. and its subsidiary Bergdorf Goodman Inc. The Federal Trade Commission said...

ALLIANCE DATA SYSTEMS RENEWS CONTRACT.(Dress Barn Inc. and Maurices Inc.)(Brief Article)
July 15, 2005... Alliance Data Systems Corp. yesterday announced that it has renewed its contract to provide private-label card services for The Dress Barn Inc. and Maurices Inc., two specialty retailers. In addition to card services, Alliance Data will provide...

MCDONALD'S TESTS ELECTRONIC-PAYMENT OFFERINGS.(Brief Article)
July 15, 2005... Fast-food giant McDonald's Corp. continues to expand its electronic-payment offerings, launching a test in May of CD "burnings" at its showcase restaurant near its Oakbrook, IL, headquarters. The restaurant in suburban Chicago features vending...

CREDIT UNION SIGNS UP CYOTA'S ANTIFRAUD SERVICE.(State Employees Credit Union)(Brief Article)
July 15, 2005... State Employees' Credit Union has installed online fraud prevention technology from New York-based Cyota, Inc. North Carolina-based SECU is using Cyota's FraudAction service, which detects phishing and pharming attacks and shuts down fraudulent...

SCOTIABANK OFFERS DISCOUNTS ON ANTIVIRUS SOFTWARE.(Bank of Nova Scotia (Toronto, Canada))(Brief Article)
July 15, 2005... Canada's Scotiabank is offering its online banking customers a "generous" discount on antivirus and personal firewall software from U.S. computer security firm McAfee Inc. Scotiabank says Scotia OnLine users can buy McAfee's VirusScan and...

VISA USA NAMES NEW CEO TO SUCCEED RETIRING CARL PASCARELLA.(John Philip Coghlan appointed)(Brief Article)
July 15, 2005... Visa USA this morning named John Philip Coghlan president and CEO, replacing Carl F. Pascarella, who is retiring after running the payments company since 1993. Coghlan, 54, who immediately replaces Pascarella, most recently was vice chairman at...

NEW VISA CEO WANTS TO MEET WITH MERCHANTS.(Visa U.S.A. Inc.'s John Philip Coghlan)
July 15, 2005... John Philip Coghlan, the new president and CEO of Visa USA, was long on a broad outlook for the association and short on details in a conference call with the media and analysts today. Visa announced this morning that Coghlan would begin his...

GROUP CHALLENGES BOFA'S PURCHASE OF MBNA.(Inner City Press/Fair Finance Watch, Bank of America Corp.)(Brief Article)
July 15, 2005... Inner City Press/Fair Finance Watch today announced that it has filed a 30-page challenge to Bank of America Corp.'s proposed $35 billion purchase of credit card issuer MBNA Corp. The NY-based organization also has asked the Federal Reserve...

LAS VEGAS COMPANY OFFERS DESTINY'S CHILD DEBIT CARD.(Celebrity Entertainment Group Inc.)(Brief Article)
July 15, 2005... A Las Vegas company is offering a debit card bearing the name of the popular singing group, Destiny's Child, although the group is planning to break up when it completes its current tour. Celebrity Entertainment Marketing Corp. last week...

BAIN CAPITAL INVESTS $75 MILLION IN FLEETCOR.(Brief Article)
July 15, 2005... Bain Capital LLC, the Boston-based private equity firm, has invested $75 million in FleetCor, the Atlanta-based issuer and processor of fleet cards, Benton Routh, FleetCor's chief marketing officer, tells CardLine today. FleetCor will use the...

REVOLVING CREDIT GROWS 1.1% IN MAY.(Federal Reserve Bank's report)(Brief Article)
July 15, 2005... The Federal Reserve Bank reported Friday that revolving credit, which is mostly credit card debt, grew on a seasonally adjusted based basis in May. Revolving credit was $796.6 billion in May compared with $795.8 billion for a 1.1% increase, a...

CONSUMERS WORRIED ABOUT DEBT, RETIREMENT.(Brief Article)
July 15, 2005... A survey carried out for Experian reveals that U.S. consumers are growing more concerned about their credit situation. They are also less able to save for retirement, the credit-rating agency says."Consumers are feeling less confident about...