Cardline articles from September 2005

Cardline archives from September 2005

BART SEEKS A LOYALTY CARD TO BOOST RIDERSHIP.
September 2, 2005... The Bay Area Rapid Transit System, or BART, has asked a number of banks to develop a credit card loyalty program for the Oakland, CA-based transportation company similar to airlines' rewards programs, a BART spokesperson tells CardLine today....

VISA REPORTS RECORD DEBIT CARD PURCHASE VOLUME IN LATIN AMERICA.
September 2, 2005... Visa International for the Latin America and the Caribbean region says purchase volume on Visa debit cards exceeded $20 billion in the 12 months ending in June, a record 48% increase over the prior year. There are now 136 million debit cards in...

NEW AMEX PROGRAM OFFERS DISCOUNT TICKETS ON PRIVATE JETS.
September 2, 2005... American Express has enhanced its rewards program for high-end travel on Bombardier Skyjet private planes. Fairfax, VA-based Bombardier has accepted American Express cards for payment since 2004 and participates in the Private Jet Services...

FLORIDA ATTORNEY GENERAL SUES COLLECTIONS AGENCY.
September 2, 2005... Florida Attorney General Charlie Crist filed a suit this week against Ellis Crosby & Associates, a Jacksonville, FL-based collections agency, and its owner, Ted Crosby, alleging the business repeatedly threatened consumers and imposed illegal...

SYMMETREX SIGNS PROCESSING DEAL WITH MORGAN BEAUMONT.
September 2, 2005... Stored-value card developer Morgan Beaumont Inc. has signed a processing agreement with Maitland, FL-based Symmetrex, Inc. The agreement calls for Symmetrex to act as the issuing processor for stored-value debit cards developed by Morgan...

DIEBOLD FORMS PARTNERSHIP FOR ATM MANAGEMENT.
September 2, 2005... North Canton, OH-based ATM vendor Diebold Inc. has teamed up with Trusted Security Solutions, Inc. (TSS), to offer cryptographic key management to Diebold's customers. Concord, North Carolina based TSS provides manual and remote key management...

CANADIAN FOOTBALL LEAGUE JOINS MINT'S PREPAID MASTERCARD TEAM.
September 2, 2005... Plastic Now Inc., Mint Inc. and People's Trust have teamed up with the Canadian Football League Players' Association to create cobranded, prepaid MasterCard cards featuring professional Canadian football players. The CFLPA plans to issue eight...

MASTERCARD ISSUER GE CONSUMER FINANCE APPLIES FOR CANADIAN BANK LICENSE.
September 2, 2005... GE Consumer Finance reported today it has applied for a banking license in Canada, where it currently operates as a non-bank entity. A GE spokesperson tells CardLine it expects approval of the application by the end of the year. The application...

EQUIFAX BUYS BENOW, ITS SECOND ACQUISITION SINCE MARCH.(Brief Article)
September 2, 2005... Equifax Inc. acquired marketing services company BeNow Inc. of Wakefield, MA, and will bring the firm into its Equifax Marketing Services division that helps companies acquire new customers and manage business relationships, according to a...

CUB FOODS EXPANDS BIOMETRIC PAYMENT PILOT.
September 2, 2005... Cub Foods, a Stillwater, MN-based supermarket chain owned by SuperValu Inc., is adding four stores in the Minneapolis area to a fingerprint biometric payment pilot it launched in May with four other stores in the region (CardLine, 5/20). "We...

INFO TOUCH SIGNS THREE-YEAR AGREEMENT WITH CIRCLE K STORES.
September 2, 2005... Software developer Info Touch Technologies Corp. has signed a three-year agreement with Circle K Stores Inc. to install additional Zaplink kiosks in more Circle K Stores and to increase the number of services the kiosks offer, an Info Touch...

NYCE SEES INCREASE IN CROSS-BORDER DEBIT CARD VOLUMES.
September 2, 2005... Canadian cardholders initiated more PIN-debit transactions this spring than they did during last fall's holiday season, when the Montvale, NJ-based NYCE network initiated the cross-border service. During last fall's Canadian Thanksgiving...

CANADIAN IMPERIAL BANK OF COMMERCE INCREASES CREDIT CARD REVENUES.
September 2, 2005... Growth in Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce's credit card business and improved spreads led to an increase of C$21 million (U.S.$17.5 million) in card revenue for the third quarter of 2005 compared with 2004's third quarter, the Toronto-based...

MOST HIBERNIA SHAREHOLDERS WANT STOCK IN CAPITAL ONE.
September 2, 2005... Preliminary figures from Hibernia Corp. shareholders show that most of them prefer to receive stock from Capital One Financial Corp. when the card issuer completes its takeover of Hibernia on Thursday. Holders of 54.4% of Hibernia's nearly 160...

GE CONSUMER FINANCE ISSUES PRIVATE-LABEL CARD FOR QVC.
September 2, 2005... GE Consumer Finance began marketing a private label card for QVC Inc., the television and Internet retailer, the two partners announced last week. The QVC channel reaches 87 million homes from its West Chester, PA, headquarters. QVC markets...

MORGAN BEAUMONT HIRES NEW MARKETING EXECUTIVE.
September 2, 2005... Morgan Beaumont Inc., a Bradenton, FL-based prepaid card marketer and services provider, has named Clare J. Morgan as its vice president of marketing, a new position at the company. Morgan most recently was vice president of marketing and...

VISA NAMES EVP AT INOVANT.(Mike Dreyer)(Brief Article)
September 2, 2005... Visa USA has named Mike Dreyer executive vice president of technology solutions for Inovant LLC, Visa's IT subsidiary, which is responsible for global transaction processing and technology development. Dreyer succeeds Scott Thompson....

AMERICAN EXPRESS CO. SETS ITS CARDHOLDERS FREE.
September 2, 2005... New York City-based American Express Co. removed cardholder restrictions today by introducing a major enhancement to its 14-year-old Membership Rewards program. Cardholders now can use AmEx's Web site www.americanexpress.com/travel to book a...

STUDY SHOWS BANKS MOVING FROM IN-HOUSE ATM MANAGEMENT.
September 2, 2005... Financial institutions will spend over $3.3 billion in 2005 on their ATM fleets, according to a study by Celent Communications LLC, a research and consulting firm. The study says that number is expected to reach $3.9 billion by 2008. Titled,...

CHASE ISSUES 'BLINK' VERSION OF UNITED CARD.
September 2, 2005... Tap-and-go payment convenience has been added to the United Mileage Plus Visa card issued by Chase Bank USA, a division of J. P. Morgan Chase & Co. The credit card uses contactless smart card payment technology, which Chase has branded "blink,"...

IKEA MOVES INTO STORE CARD ARENA.
September 2, 2005... GE Consumer Finance reported today that it will issue a private-label credit card in the U.S. for the Ikea Group, the Swedish home furnishings company. Consumers will be able to apply for the card at in-store kiosks or on Ikea's U.S. Web site....

CANADIAN CREDIT CARD BORROWING DOWN.
September 2, 2005... The Bank of Canada, the country's central bank, says that in the second quarter of 2005 Canadian consumers' credit card borrowing fell to C$36.6 billion (US$30.5 billion) from C$37 billion in the previous quarter. In the first quarter of 2004,...

EFMARK GETS EDGE BY USING NCR'S LICENSED DIAGNOSTIC SOFTWARE.
September 2, 2005... Efmark Premium Armored, an automated teller machine maintenance provider, has entered into NCR Corporation's Authorized Sales & Service Provider program. The fee that Efmark paid to be part of the program was not disclosed. Being part of the...

ICE CREAM VENDOR OFFERS UP TASTY GIFT CARDS.
September 2, 2005... VeriFone Holdings Inc., the San Jose, CA-based point-of-sale terminal marketer, announced today that Cold Stone Creamery Inc. will use its Omni 3750 terminal to implement a national gift card program. Ice cream seller Cold Stone will replace...

EFT FEATURE LAUNCHED FOR GIFT CARD PROGRAM.
September 2, 2005... Vancouver, Canada-based Ernex has launched an electronic funds transfer service for group loyalty and gift card programs. The automated fund-settlement option has been designed to eliminate the manual reconciliation process for retailers that...

CORRECTION.(Correction Notice)
September 2, 2005... CardLine incorrectly reported today that GE Money Bank is a brand that General Electric Co. uses to market its finance operations. Instead, the GE Money Bank is the U.S. bank of GE Consumer Finance. MasterCard International used capital on...

HYPERCOM NAMES KEIPER PRESIDENT AND CEO.
September 2, 2005... Hypercom Corp. this afternoon named William Keiper, 54, president and CEO and Daniel D. Diethelm, 42, chairman. Keiper had been serving as Hypercom's interim president and CEO since March 30, when he was selected to replace Chris Alexander...

CHASE BUYS SEARS CANADA CARD PORTFOLIO.
September 2, 2005... J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. will buy the C$2.5 billion (U.S. $2.1 billion) Sears Canada Inc. private-label card and cobranded MasterCard International credit card portfolio, Chase announced this morning. The portfolio includes about 10 million...

MASTERCARD ANNOUNCES AN INITIAL PUBLIC OFFERING.
September 2, 2005... MasterCard Inc., parent company of MasterCard International, announced this morning an initial public offering (IPO) that will lead to the creation of a publicly traded company. The IPO will include the appointment of a new board of directors...

PROVIDIAN SHAREHOLDERS APPROVE MERGER WITH WASHINGTON MUTUAL.
September 2, 2005... Shareholders of credit card issuer Providian Financial Corp. this morning approved the company's $6.45 billion merger with Washington Mutual Inc., the Seattle-based thrift. During a special shareholders' meeting in San Francisco, 67% of...

MASTERCARD EXPLAINS WHY IT'S GOING PUBLIC.
September 2, 2005... MasterCard International's parent company, said today it is going public to accomplish a number of things, including raising money, reaching out to merchants and competing with new payments players. MasterCard said its new management structure...

VISA MAY BE FORCED TO CHANGE ITS STRUCTURE, TOO.
September 2, 2005... Visa may be forced to abandon its association structure and become a public company as well if MasterCard's initial public offering succeeds, Dan Schatt, senior analyst for Celent, a Boston-based consulting company, tells CardLine. "I think it...

ANALYSTS CHEER MASTERCARD'S IPO PLAN.
September 2, 2005... Market watchers today reacted positively to MasterCard's plans for an initial public offering of company stock. "It's long overdue," says Alex "Pete" Hart, who left as MasterCard's CEO in 1994. "It will eliminate a lot of the legal issues they...

PAYPAL ANNOUNCES NEW MICROPAYMENT PRICING STRUCTURE.
September 2, 2005... Online payments giant PayPal announced today new processing fees for very small purchases. PayPal's new fees are for purchases of less than $2. The price applies to digital content, such as songs, ring tones, online greeting cards and news...

IN LAS VEGAS, YOU CAN FEED THE METER WITH YOUR CELL PHONE.
September 2, 2005... Las Vegas today began accepting payments made with cards and cellular telephones for parking meters in the city's downtown business district, micropayments processor Peppercoin Inc. announced. Drivers can swipe their credit or debit card at 15...

EXPERIAN ACQUIRES BAKER HILL.
September 2, 2005... With plans to build relationships with small businesses, Experian announced today that it has acquired Baker Hill, a company that offers services in the areas of credit origination, risk management and relationship management. The deal helps...

SEARS CANADA EXPECTS TO NET CS2.2 BILLION FROM THE SALE OF ITS CARD PORTFOLIO.
September 2, 2005... Sears Canada Inc. reported today it would net nearly C$2.2 billion (U.S. $1.85 billion) in cash from the sale of its portfolio of 10 million store cards and private-label cards to J.P Morgan Chase & Co. Sears Canada expects an after-tax gain of...

HURRICANE KATRINA PUTS A DAMPER ON BIG CARD DEAL.
September 2, 2005... Hurricane Katrina's devastating blows to New Orleans have delayed today's scheduled closing of Capital One Financial Corp.'s $5.3 billion purchase of Hibernia Corp., which owns the largest retail bank in the stricken city. The closing is now...

REVOLVING DOOR TURNS AGAIN AT FIRST DATA'S CARD SERVICES.
September 2, 2005... James L. Schoedinger, who replaced Eula Adams as head of First Data Corp.'s Card Issuing Services unit just 20 months ago, is now himself out of a job. First Data announced today Schoedinger is leaving the company to pursue "other...

CARDSYSTEMS MEETS ITS OWN COMPLIANCE DEADLINE; NOW IT WAITS.
September 2, 2005... CardSystems Solutions Inc., which was at the center of a major breach of payment card data, today announced it has met its self-imposed Aug. 31 deadline to submit an independent report concerning its security procedures. AmbironTrustWave, a...

ANALYSTS AWAIT MORE INFORMATION BEFORE PUTTING A VALUE ON MASTERCARD.
September 2, 2005... Analysts are seeking more details before putting a value on MasterCard Inc., parent company of MasterCard International, following its announcement yesterday that it planned an initial public offering (IPO) (CardLine Special Bulletin, 8/31)....

MASTERCARD DELAYS START OF FEE FOR OVERSEAS CARD USE.
September 2, 2005... MasterCard International is delaying until April 2006 plans to charge member issuers fees when their cardholders use the plastic outside the U.S. "We had requests from members who needed time to implement the system changes," a MasterCard...

GEORGIA COUNTY ADDS CARDS AS A TAX-PAYMENT OPTION.
September 2, 2005... Cobb County, GA, has signed an agreement with a Reston, VA-based transaction processor to enable citizens of the county to use payment cards to make their real-estate tax payments. When the consumers visit the county's Web site,...

ENCORE CAPITAL BUYS BANKRUPTCY SERVICE PROVIDER.
September 2, 2005... Encore Capital Group Inc., a San Diego-based collections company and buyer of bad debt, expanded its holdings this week by purchasing Ascension Capital Group, an Arlington, TX-based bankruptcy services provider that works with many of the...

INDIVIDUALS GO ONLINE TO DONATE TO KATRINA VICTIMS; RELIEF AGENCIES LOVE IT.(Hurricane Katrina, 2005)(Brief Article)
September 9, 2005... The percentage of payment card donations being collected online for relief from Hurricane Katrina, which has devastated New Orleans Aug. 29, is markedly higher than for previous disasters, some nonprofits report. The American Red Cross, for...

FINANCIAL-SERVICES COMPANIES GET OUT THEIR CHECKBOOKS FOR VICTIMS OF KATRINA.(Hurricane Katrina, 2005)(Brief Article)
September 9, 2005... Financial services companies have announced donations and discounts to help move money and supplies to the hurricane-ravaged Gulf Coast: --Capital One Financial Corp. has pledged $1 million to the Red Cross. --American Express Co. is donating...

65% OF COLLEGE STUDENTS HAVE CREDIT CARD DEBT.
September 9, 2005... The majority of college students are in credit card debt, primarily from using the plastic to purchase toiletries, clothing and personal items, according to a recent survey conducted by Smith College. The survey found that 65% of college...

STUDY: THE AFTERNOON IS THE RIGHT TIME FOR ONLINE FRAUDSTERS.
September 9, 2005... Retail Decisions plc, a card-fraud prevention firm, says it has identified the behavioral characteristics of individuals who commit online credit card fraud in the U.S. The prime time frame for U.S. online card fraud is 1p.m. to 5p.m., Retail...

DEBIT SOON MAY OVERTAKE CREDIT IN NUMBER OF TRANSACTIONS.
September 9, 2005... Signature- and PIN-based debit card transactions may surpass credit card transaction volume in the next year, suggest new data from the 2006 edition of the EFT Data Book, compiled each year by CardLine sister publication ATM&Debit News....

ATM DEPLOYMENT RISES AS TRANSACTION VOLUME FALLS.(Brief Article)
September 9, 2005... Consumers are using ATMs less often even as more ATMs are being deployed, a disconnect that is leading some deployers to move some of the machines they have installed in convenience stores, supermarkets and other off-premise locations. The...

ALLIANCE FORMS CONTACTLESS COUNCIL.
September 9, 2005... The newly formed Contactless Payments Council is taking on as its mission educating consumers, merchants and issuers about contactless payment technologies. Part of the Smart Card Alliance, a smart card industry group, the council's projects...

VISA KICKS OFF FOOTBALL SEASON WITH NEW ENGLAND PATRIOTS.
September 9, 2005... Just as the New England Patriots offensive line protects star quarterback Tom Brady, Visa protects cardholders against identity theft and fraud. That is the message of a new television commercial from Visa USA that the San Francisco-based...

ATMS DOWN IN NEW ORLEANS.
September 9, 2005... The path of destruction Hurricane Katrina blasted onto the Gulf Coast last week spared nothing - not homes, not businesses, not even ATMs. While only 26 of RBS Lynk's ATMs have been reported as not operational, Mike Cowart, ATM operations...

KATRINA DONATIONS.
September 9, 2005... Several payments industry companies have announced plans to aid victims of Hurricane Katrina. Recent announcements include the following: - JPMorgan Chase & Co. will donate $1 million to the American Red Cross and will match employee donations...

MEXICO BANK ORDERS WIRELESS PAYMENT TERMINALS.
September 9, 2005... About 7,000 gasoline stations in Mexico will be outfitted with wireless payment terminals from VeriFone Holdings Inc. as part of an order for 10,000 wireless payment terminals by an unnamed Mexico bank, says VeriFone, a San Jose, CA, payment...

DUANE READE ACCEPTS TAP-AND-GO PAYMENT.
September 9, 2005... The New York-based Duane Reade drug store chain announced today it will accept contactless MasterCard PayPass cards and other PayPass devices at all of its 254 locations by the end of the year. "The addition of this new offering will provide...

7-ELEVEN TO OFFER TCF CUSTOMERS SURCHARGE-FREE ACCESS.
September 9, 2005... 7-Eleven, Inc. will offer surcharge-free ATM transactions to TCF Bank Customers in Colorado, Illinois, Indiana and the greater Detroit metropolitan area. The 583 ATMs in those areas will be labeled with TCF Bank signage inside 7-Eleven stores....

'GET WIRED' WITH MASTERCARD.
September 9, 2005... MasterCard International is offering business cardholders the chance to win new computer systems. As part of the "Get Wired" sweepstakes announced last week, Purchase, NY-based MasterCard offers all MasterCard Business Card and debit MasterCard...

NEW HIRES.(TransFirst Corp. named Barry Ervi, Global Payments Inc. named Kevin J. Schultz )(Brief Article)
September 9, 2005... Dallas-based payment processor, Transfirst Inc. has named Barry Ervi as Midwest vice president of business development for its independent sales services division. Ervi has 15 years experience in the bankcard industry. In his new position, Ervi...

HURRICANE SALE--CAPITAL ONE TO PURCHASE HIBERNIA FOR LESS BECAUSE OF WEATHER DAMAGE.
September 9, 2005... Capital One Financial Corp. will pay $5 billion in cash and stock for Hibernia Corp., a 9% drop from the previous price of $5.35 billion, the two financial institutions announced today. The renegotiated price is due to the impact of Hurricane...

GOVERNMENT WILL GIVE STORED-VALUE CARDS TO KATRINA VICTIMS.
September 9, 2005... The U.S. Department of Homeland Security will give stored-value cards worth $2,000 each to the adult victims of Hurricane Katrina who are living in the Houston Astrodome and other rescue centers. About 25,000 refugees from New Orleans and...

MORE FINANCIAL-SERVICES COMPANIES DONATE TO HURRICANE RELIEF.
September 9, 2005... Here is today's roundup of Hurricane Katrina relief efforts by financial-services companies: --PSCU Financial Services, a St. Petersburg, FL-based service organization owned by more than 500 member credit unions, has donated $150,000 to the...

HSBC TO ISSUE CONTACTLESS PAYMENT CARDS.
September 9, 2005... The U.S. banking unit of UK-based HSBC Group is the latest issuer planning to launch contactless payment cards in the United States, CardLine's sister publication Card Technology has learned. A spokeswoman for HSBC confirmed the bank would soon...

REACTION IS CAUTIOUS TO CAPITAL ONE'S NEW DEAL FOR HIBERNIA.
September 9, 2005... Early reaction was cautious to Capital One Financial Corp.'s announcement today that it will still buy Hibernia Corp., though for a lower price. The sale had been delayed a week due to the unknown but surely huge losses the Gulf Coast will...

ONLINE DEBIT PURCHASES GREW FOR MASTERCARD.
September 9, 2005... MasterCard International today reported that processing of online debit purchase transactions in the U.S. dramatically grew in the second quarter compared with the same three-month period a year ago. As of June 30, MasterCard said, the number...

BANK OF CANADA RAISES ITS INTEREST RATE.
September 9, 2005... Canada's central bank, the Bank of Canada, today raised interest rates for the first time in 11 months. It raised its key rate, the overnight interest rate, by 0.25 percentage points to 2.75% from 2.50%. Canadian banks responded to the rate...

UK RULING UNLIKELY TO AFFECT U.S. INTERCHANGE POLICY.
September 9, 2005... Yesterday's ruling by the United Kingdom's Office of Fair Trading that the interchange system created by MasterCard International's UK members was anticompetitive will not influence U.S. antitrust policy, some experts say. "The antitrust...

KATRINA HASN'T DAMPENED ELECTRONIC TRANSACTIONS AT TSYS, BUT..
September 9, 2005... M. Troy Woods, president and chief operating officer of Total System Services Inc., said the processor has not experienced a drop-off in electronic transactions because of Hurricane Katrina. But Woods says "that common sense tells you" that...

...KATRINA SENDS SOME OF CARDTRONICS' ATMS DEEP-SEA DIVING.
September 9, 2005... While many ATM independent sales organizations are still trying to determine the impact Hurricane Katrina had on their operations, Cardtronics LP today disclosed that 300 of its ATMs have been affected by the hurricane and 269 are still not...

TSYS IS IN TALKS TO ENTER CHINA.
September 9, 2005... TSYS, the Columbus, GA-based card processor, is in talks to enter China, M. Troy Woods, president and chief operating officer, told CardLine today. Woods says TSYS is in negotiations with an unnamed company to enter that market. The company...

CREDIT-COUNSELING AGENCIES EXPECT AN INCREASE IN CLIENTS.
September 9, 2005... Credit counselors estimate they will provide twice as many counseling sessions in the next 12 months compared with last year as the federal bankruptcy reform law takes effect on October 17, the National Foundation for Credit Counseling reported...

FOOTBALL FANS NEED NOT FUMBLE FOR CASH.
September 9, 2005... Two more National Football League teams have announced they will accept contactless MasterCard PayPass cards at concession stands starting with Sunday's opening game. The Washington Redskins and the New York Giants join the Baltimore Ravens,...

FINANCIAL ACCESS SOLUTIONS TECHNOLOGY BUYS CAR-TEL DISTRIBUTION.
September 9, 2005... Montreal-based Financial Access Solutions Technology Inc, has signed a letter of intent to acquire 100% of Car-Tel Distributions Inc., a payment card distribution company. Financial Access Solutions Technology supplies point-of-sale terminals,...

INFINICORP BUYS TEG'S CARD PORTFOLIO.
September 9, 2005... InfiCorp Holdings Inc. will buy the existing credit card portfolio of Poughkeepsie, NY-based TEG Federal Credit Union, broker Brookwood Capital reports today. The portfolio had about 4,700 accounts and $4.2 million in receivables on June 30,...

TSYS EYES NEW MARKETS FOR GIFT AND PREPAID CARDS.(Total System Services Inc.)(Brief Article)
September 16, 2005... Total System Services Inc. (TSYS) is eyeing two potentially large gift/prepaid card markets, M. Troy Woods, TSYS president and chief operating officer, told CardLine yesterday in Chicago. TSYS, the Columbus, GA-based card processor, expanded...

VERIFONE DONATES TERMINALS TO MERCHANTS AFFECTED BY KATRINA.(Verifone Holdings Inc.)(Brief Article)
September 16, 2005... VeriFone Holdings Inc., the San Jose, CA, payment terminal maker, has donated 500 countertop and wireless terminals for use by merchants in Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama affected by Hurricane Katrina. VeriFone made the donation through...

MASTERCARD GIVES ISSUERS MORE SPACE FOR IMAGES ON CARDS.(Brief Article)
September 16, 2005... In an effort to give financial institutions more freedom to design their cards, MasterCard is giving issuers more space on the front of their cards to do as they please. The Purchase, NY-based company will give issuers 10.5% more space by...

MASTERCARD AND CHASE GO APE FOR KING KONG.(JPMorgan Chase and Co., MasterCard International Inc. and Universal Studios Inc. offers Universal Entertainment MasterCard)(Brief Article)
September 16, 2005... Fans of King Kong will be able to apply for a Universal Entertainment MasterCard bearing the ape's visage. The new card, from JPMorgan Chase & Co., MasterCard and Universal Studios, will commemorate the theatrical release of the latest King...

PROCESSORS RECORD A .42% MEAN RETURN IN AUGUST.(Brief Article)
September 16, 2005... The stocks of the 10 processors in Barrington Research Associates' Electronic Transaction Processors Index recorded a mean return of 0.42% in August. That beat the 2.89% drop in the S&P 500 Index and the 1.49% decline in the Dow Jones...

GLOBAL AXCESS RAISES $3 MILLION FOR ATM PURCHASES.(from Wachovia Bank)(Brief Article)
September 16, 2005... Global Axcess Corp., the Ponte Vedra, FL-based ATM operator, has borrowed an additional $3 million from Wachovia Bank to expand its ATM portfolio. The money will be used to pay for the acquisition of an unnamed U.S. East Coast-based ATM...

HEARTLAND ACHIEVES PROCESSING MILESTONES.(Heartland Payment Systems Inc.)(Brief Article)
September 16, 2005... Merchant acquirer Heartland Payment Systems today announced that for the first time in the Princeton, NJ, company's history, it achieved three processing milestones in August. Heartland claims it handled over $2 billion in Visa card processing...

REGULUS HIRES SECURITY AND TECHNOLOGY EXPERTS.(Regulus Group LLC appoints Christian Philips and Jeffrey Dalton)(Brief Article)
September 16, 2005... Regulus Group LLC, a Napa, CA-based bill presentment and payment processor, has hired Christian Philips as security officer and Jeffrey Dalton as technology operations officer. Philips will be responsible for ensuring that Regulus complies with...

KATRINA'S DEBIT CARD FIZZLES OUT.(Federal Emergency Management Agency stops distribution of debit cards)
September 16, 2005... The FEMA stored-value card had a shorter shelf life than Michael Brown's supervision of the cleanup following Hurricane Katrina. The Federal Emergency Management Agency stopped offering the cards to Louisiana and Mississippi evacuees Friday,...

APPARENTLY NOT CARDHOLDERS.(online sales)(Brief Article)
September 16, 2005... Online sales continued to grow in the second quarter despite the raft of news stories of consumer data theft and loss, CyberSource Corp. reported recently. CyberSource provides processing and risk management for online merchants. CyberSource...