MasterCard Extends Debit Relationship with KeyBank

February 01, 2012 08:30 AM Eastern Time 

KeyBank Signs a new Multi-Year Contract, Adds PIN Capability and Employs MasterCard IPS Debit and Prepaid Processing Platform

PURCHASE, N.Y.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--MasterCard today announced a new multi-year contract with KeyBank to deliver industry-leading debit payment solutions and processing capabilities.

“For more than a decade, we have worked with KeyBank to develop meaningful ways to empower cardholders in their daily financial activities”

As a result, Key will continue to provide its consumer and business customers with a safe, simple and secure experience every time they use their debit card online, in stores or at the ATM.

KeyBank’s Debit MasterCard program will add the capability for PIN transactions to the long-standing signature purchases and ATM withdrawal functionalities. Under the agreement, KeyBank will implement the world-class debit and prepaid transaction processing capabilities of MasterCard Integrated Processing Solutions® (IPS).

“We’re pleased to continue our long-standing-relationship with MasterCard,” said Bill Koehler, president of Key Community Bank. “The changing dynamics of the payments and debit card space today require new thinking and strategic innovation. Our partnership with MasterCard will allow us to deliver debit and processing solutions that meet the needs of our clients.”

MasterCard IPS is a leading-edge debit and prepaid processing platform that offers a complete processing solution to create differentiated products and services and quickly expand payments portfolios across business channels efficiently and with minimal infrastructure investment. The platform provides a complete range of processing services for signature and PIN debit, as well as ATM and global prepaid.

“For more than a decade, we have worked with KeyBank to develop meaningful ways to empower cardholders in their daily financial activities,” said Chris McWilton, president, U.S. Markets, MasterCard. “By expanding our relationship, KeyBank has added a flexible foundation to serve the many needs of its cardholders for years to come.”

KeyBank and MasterCard have been partners since 1997, offering cardholders a range of MasterCard-branded card options, including KeyBank Gold Debit MasterCard^®, Rewards Debit MasterCard^®, and World Debit™ MasterCard^® cards.

About KeyCorp

KeyCorp was organized more than 160 years ago and is headquartered in Cleveland, Ohio. One of the nation’s largest bank-based financial services companies, Key has assets of approximately $89 billion.

Key provides deposit, lending, cash management and investment services to individuals and small businesses in 14 states under the name of KeyBank N.A. Key also provides a broad range of sophisticated corporate and investment banking products, such as merger and acquisition advice, public and private debt and equity, syndications and derivatives to middle market companies in selected industries throughout the United States under the KeyBanc Capital Markets trade name.

First Data Reports Fourth Quarter and Full-Year 2011 Financial Results

February 01, 2012 07:04 AM Eastern Time 

• Fourth quarter 2011 consolidated revenue of $2.7 billion, down 2%; adjusted revenue of $1.7 billion, up 3%
• Fourth quarter net loss attributable to First Data improved $110 million; adjusted EBITDA up 16%
• Generated $1.1 billion in operating cash flow for 2011 and ended the quarter with $1.7 billion in unrestricted liquidity

ATLANTA--(BUSINESS WIRE)--First Data Corporation today reported its financial results for the fourth quarter ended Dec. 31, 2011. Consolidated revenue for the fourth quarter was $2.69 billion, down $43 million or 2%, compared to a year ago on a $115 million decline in debit network fees. These fees are passed directly to customers and therefore did not impact operating income. Adjusted revenue, which excludes certain items including debit network fees, increased $47 million, or 3% year-over-year to $1.73 billion.

“Our commitment to bringing innovative products to market and serving our customers positions us well to take advantage of the dynamic changes in the payments industry.”

For the fourth quarter, the net loss attributable to First Data was $69 million, compared to a loss of $179 million a year ago. The change was largely driven by a $171 million improvement in operating income. Adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (adjusted EBITDA) was $655 million, up $91 million, or 16%, compared to $564 million in the fourth quarter of 2010, driven by revenue growth in Retail and Alliance Services and cost reductions across the business.

Consolidated revenue for the full year 2011 was $10.71 billion up 3% due to revenue growth in the global merchant acquiring business and higher pass-through debit network fees. Full-year adjusted revenue increased 2% to $6.59 billion. The full-year net loss attributable to First Data was $516 million, a year-over-year improvement of $506 million. For 2011, adjusted EBITDA was $2.25 billion, up $221 million, or 11%, compared to $2.03 billion in 2010.

First Data generated $1.12 billion in operating cash flow, after interest payments of $1.44 billion, for the full year and finished the quarter with $1.72 billion in unrestricted liquidity—$255 million in cash available for corporate use plus $1.47 billion under the revolving credit facility.

“Despite a challenging economic environment, we grew adjusted EBITDA 11% for the full year of 2011 through a combination of top-line growth and expense reductions,” said Chief Executive Officer Jonathan J. Judge. “Our commitment to bringing innovative products to market and serving our customers positions us well to take advantage of the dynamic changes in the payments industry.”

Segment Results

Retail and Alliance Services segment revenue for the fourth quarter was $926 million, up $53 million, or 6%, compared to $873 million in 2010. Core merchant revenue was up 9% driven by lower debit interchange rates and new processing revenue from the Bank of America Merchant Services alliance. Transaction growth was 3%, credit mix was stable at 72% and regional average ticket was $69, or flat compared to a year ago. Product revenue was also flat as growth in prepaid was offset by declining check-processing as consumers migrate from checks to electronic payments. Segment EBITDA was $416 million, up $43 million, or 12%, compared to 2010 driven primarily by revenue growth. Margin for the fourth quarter improved to 45%. During the quarter, Retail and Alliance Services added six new independent sales organizations, five bank referral agreements, and three new revenue sharing agreements.

Full-year Retail and Alliance Services segment revenue was $3.4 billion, up $67 million, or 2%, compared to $3.3 billion in 2010. Revenue was driven by 6% transaction growth, lower debit interchange rates and new processing revenue from the Bank of America Merchant Services alliance. Growth in prepaid and point of sale equipment was offset by declines in check processing. During the year, Retail and Alliance Services added 32 new independent sales organizations, 39 bank referral agreements and six new revenue sharing agreements. For 2011, segment EBITDA was $1.4 billion, up $85 million or 6%, compared to $1.3 billion in 2010. Margin improved to 42%.

Financial Services segment revenue for the fourth quarter was $354 million, down $4 million, or 1%, compared to $358 million in the same quarter of 2010, as new business and volume growth were offset by lost business, expected levels of price compression, and a prior-year contract termination fee. Active card accounts on file were up 4% compared to the prior year. Debit issuer transactions were up 6%. Segment EBITDA was $158 million, up $17 million, or 12%, compared to $141 million in 2010. Expenses declined by $22 million compared to a year ago driven primarily by lower technology and operations costs. Margin for the fourth quarter improved to 45%. During the quarter, Financial Services renewed more than 400 contracts with financial institutions.

Full-year Financial Services segment revenue was $1.4 billion, down $30 million, or 2%, compared to 2010. New business and volume growth were more than offset by lost business, price compression and lower contract termination fees. Segment EBITDA for 2011 was $593 million, up $40 million, or 7%, compared to $553 million in 2010, due primarily to lower technology and operations costs. Margin improved to 43%. During the year, Financial Services renewed more than 1,400 contracts with financial institutions.

International segment revenue for the fourth quarter was $441 million, up $1 million, or essentially flat, compared to $440 million in the prior year. On a constant currency basis, segment revenue was up 2%. Merchant acquiring revenue, on a constant currency basis, grew 3% on higher transaction volumes, partially offset by lower revenue resulting from changes that were made in the company's product mix in order to improve margins. Issuing revenue, on a constant currency basis, grew 1% as pricing increases in Asia, volume growth in Latin America and a contract termination fee in Europe were offset by lost business and product mix shifts away from lower margin revenue. Segment EBITDA was $131 million, up $35 million, or 36%, compared to $96 million in 2010 due to cost reductions and the revenue items mentioned above. Margin improved to 30%. Foreign currency exchange rates had a negligible impact on EBITDA.

Full-year International segment revenue was $1.8 billion, up $140 million or 9%, compared to 2010. Segment revenue on a constant currency basis was up 4%. Segment EBITDA was $454 million, up $125 million, or 38%, compared to $330 million for 2010. Margin improved to 26%. Segment EBITDA benefitted from revenue flow through, cost reductions and favorable foreign currency exchange rates.

Non-GAAP Measures

In certain circumstances, results have been presented that are non-GAAP (generally accepted accounting principles) measures and should be viewed in addition to, and not in lieu of, the company's reported results. Reconciliations to comparable GAAP measures are available in the accompanying schedules and in the "Investor Relations" section of the company's website at investor.firstdata.com.

Investor Conference Call

The company will host an investor conference call and webcast on Wednesday, Feb. 1, 2012 at 10 a.m. ET to review fourth quarter 2011 financial results. First Data Chief Financial Officer Ray Winborne will lead the call and will be joined by Chief Executive Officer Jonathan J. Judge.

The call will be webcast on the “Investor Relations” section of the First Data website at investor.firstdata.com and a slide presentation will accompany the call.

To listen to the call via teleconference, dial 800-561-2693 (U.S.) or 617-614-3523 (outside the U.S.), pass code 83799682.

Related articles

• First Data Reports Third Quarter 2011 Financial Results (epaymentnews.blogspot.com)

Discover’s Cashback Bonus® Redemption Continues to Trend Upward

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Company Enhances 2012 Cashback Bonus^® Program

RIVERWOODS, Ill.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Discover cardmembers redeeming their Cashback Bonus^® rewards continued to trend upward in 2011, with the company citing a 20 percent increase over 2010. Both online and mobile redemptions also grew in popularity as 73 percent of cardmembers redeemed this way in 2011.

“Not only did cardmembers respond favorably to the extra Cashback Bonus that more than 70 top retailers offered during the holiday season, but they also appreciated the various enhancements we made throughout the year to ShopDiscover, such as adding merchant coupons and site functionality,” said Dana Traci, vice president of rewards and product management at Discover. “As for increased redemption, cardmembers clearly are seeing there’s great value in redeeming their Cashback Bonus,whether it be for partner gift cards, merchandise, statement credits or on Amazon.com.”Online shopping sales for Discover’s exclusive online shopping portal, ShopDiscover, also increased at a pace significantly above industry averages. ShopDiscover sales increased 64 percent compared to last year and site traffic was up 41 percent as cardmembers flocked to receive an additional 5-20%Cashback Bonus at top online retailers. The total Cashback Bonus awarded to cardmembers who shopped on ShopDiscover was up 62 percent compared to last year.

Building on the momentum of 2011, Discover recently revealed its 2012 5% Cashback Bonus calendar with new merchant categories, giving cardmembers the potential to earn up to $75 of additional Cashback Bonus for the first and second quarter of 2012.

Through March 31, Discover cardmembers can sign up to earn 5% Cashback Bonus on up to $1,500 in gas, movie and museum purchases. They’ll have that same opportunity from April through June on purchases made at restaurants and movie theaters. After reaching the $1,500 spending limit for each quarter, cardmembers will still automatically earn up to 1% Cashback Bonus every time they use their cards.

For nearly seven years, Discover’s 5% Cashback Bonus program has consistently provided cardmembers with the opportunity to earn5% Cashback Bonus in rotating categories throughout the year. Categories are chosen based on consumer shopping patterns to provide the most relevant and valuable rewards opportunities. Merchant categories for the second half of 2012 include gas, movies and theme parks for third quarter, and movies, department, electronic and toy stores for fourth quarter.

Crédit Agricole Selects Gemalto for Large-Scale Deployment of Contactless EMV Payment in France

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January 31, 2012 01:00 AM Eastern Time 

Banking Card That Facilitates Easier Payment and with Added Security Features is Also Certified By “Groupement d’Intérêt Economique – Carte Bancaire”

AMSTERDAM--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Gemalto (Euronext NL0000400653 GTO), the world leader in digital security, announces it is behind Crédit Agricole’s large-scale deployment of contactless EMV banking cards in France. The Crédit Agricole group is market leader in full-service retail banking in France and one of the largest banks in Europe. Gemalto is the first to market the highly secure Optelio contactless EMV banking card certified by GIE-CB (“Groupement d’Intérêt Economique – Carte Bancaire”) with optimized EMV risk management features for the French market.

The card also features additional protections that reinforce security and complement the traditional EMV payment functionality. These added features provide improved flexibility while maintaining a high level of risk management for Crédit Agricole.The deployment opens the door to the world of contactless payment for all of Crédit Agricole’s customers. Cardholders can enjoy a new payment experience by simply waving or tapping their card in front of a contactless reader at the point-of-sale for purchases under 20 euros, while transactions above that amount will require a PIN confirmation. The technology saves time for both merchants and cardholders and greatly reduces cash handling.

"Leveraging their global expertise in EMV and contactless rollouts worldwide, the Gemalto team put forward the right product at the right time for our program in France," according to Crédit Agricole.

"With this new project, Crédit Agricole is keen to offer their customers secure and reliable payment solutions, while benefiting from the latest technological innovations," added Gabrielle Bugat, Senior Vice President, Gemalto. “Contactless is one of the key cooperation and development areas for 2012, both for Gemalto and Crédit Agricole."

About Gemalto

Gemalto (Euronext NL0000400653 GTO) is the world leader in digital security with 2010 annual revenues of €1.9 billion and over 10,000 employees operating out of 87 offices and 13 Research & Development centers in 45 countries.

Gemalto is at the heart of our evolving digital society. Billions of people worldwide increasingly want the freedom to communicate, travel, shop, bank, entertain, and work—anytime, anywhere, in ways that are convenient, enjoyable and secure. Gemalto delivers on the growing demands for personal mobile services, identity protection, payment security, authenticated online services, cloud computing access, modern transportation, e-healthcare and e-government services. Gemalto does this by providing secure software, a wide range of secure personal devices, and managed services to wireless operators, banks, enterprises and government agencies.

Gemalto is the world leader for electronic passports and identity cards, two-factor authentication devices for online protection, smart credit/debit and contactless payment cards, as well as subscriber identification modules (SIM) and universal integrated circuit cards (UICC) in mobile phones. Also, in the emerging machine-to-machine applications Gemalto is a leading supplier of wireless modules and machine identification modules (MIM). To operate these solutions and remotely manage the software and confidential data contained in the secure devices Gemalto also provides server platforms, consulting, training, and managed services to help its customers achieve their goals.

As the use of Gemalto’s software and secure devices increases with the number of people interacting in the digital and wireless world, the Company is poised to thrive over the coming years.

Apple iPhone 5 Will Have NFC?

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Apple iPhone 5 To Support NFC ? 3G.co.uk The Apple iPhone 5 has been expected to support Near-Field Communications (NFC) ever since rumours began. Infact, we're quite surprised it wasn't added to the iPhone 4S, but perhaps Apple wanted to wait until the technology was more wide-spread. See all stories on this topic » iPhone 5 to Boast of NFC - Real Deal or Rumor? International Business Times By Wendy Li: Subscribe to Wendy's RSS feed The Near Field Communication (NFC) technology will reportedly be packed in the next generation iPhone - dubbed iPhone 5. NFC is short range wireless communication technology, which can be used in mobile phones ... See all stories on this topic »

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Anywhere Commerce Granted New Patent for Conducting Secure Transactions

PALO ALTO, Calif., Jan. 31, 2012 /PRNewswire via COMTEX/ -- AnywhereCommerce, a leading eCommerce and mCommerce engineering and solutions provider, announced the issuance of US Patent No. 8,055,545, Apparatus and method for conducting secure financial transactions.

Specifically, the patented technology uses a "trusted platform module" which stores sensitive consumer payment information securely. A virtual appliance module exists to create a protected environment wherein two computers can share a secure connection to deliver secure information stored in the TPM (TPM is one of the backbones of PC/mobile data security). Financial information is passed between parties using the most secure integrated chip technology along with encryption standards to protect all data transmission. For example, a bank can transmit and embed a consumers payment credentials to a mobile handset and enable a variety of transactions including; NFC, credit and debit.

"The technology covered by this patent will help revolutionize mobile commerce" said Mitchell Cobrin, AnywhereCommerce CEO. "One of the major concerns to widespread adoption of mobile commerce has been the lack of a simple but secure methodology for transmitting sensitive data. The AnywhereCommerce technology resolves this issue by providing a highly innovative (and now patented) dual authentication methodology that can be easily implemented."

"This patent bolsters our patent portfolio and continues to establish AnywhereCommerce's important role in the hyper-growing mobile payments ecosystem". Cobrin added "In today's technology environment, patent portfolios are recognized as necessary assets and we believe our growing patent portfolio is vital to providing secure payment solutions to financial institutions, merchants and consumers. In addition to our intellectual property, we continue to develop state-of-the-art certified mobile solutions that will support tailored security for data stored on TPM chips for respective application needs."

About AnywhereCommerceAnywhereCommerce is a global eCommerce and mCommerce payments technology engineering and solutions provider with patented and proprietary suites of hardware and software services for secure online and mobile card present credit card, PIN debit Chip and PIN- EMV and NFC transactions. The universal "aCommerce" platform is ideal for eCommerce, mCommerce, P2P, retail line busting as well as traditional field services such as repairman, delivery or taxi services. PCI certified devices and bank grade secure end-to-end ecosystem provides greater security, reliability, convenience and return on investment for consumers, merchants, networks, issuers and acquirers.

NFC Forum Members to Demonstrate Innovative Solutions in Frankfurt, Feb. 8

January 31, 2012 04:00 AM Eastern Time 

WAKEFIELD, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The NFC Forum, a non-profit industry association that advances the use of Near Field Communication (NFC) technology, will host a Solutions Showcase at a reception in Frankfurt, Germany on February 8, where six member companies will demonstrate their NFC-enabled products and services.

“We are looking forward to the NFC Forum's inaugural Solutions Showcase as an energizing complement to our Members Meeting in Frankfurt”

Attendance at the reception is free of charge, but advance registration is required. The event will take place from 6 to 8 PM in the Lemons & Limes Bar at the Sheraton Frankfurt Airport Hotel & Conference Center, and refreshments will be served.

"We are looking forward to the NFC Forum's inaugural Solutions Showcase as an energizing complement to our Members Meeting in Frankfurt," said Koichi Tagawa, NFC Forum Chairman. "We encourage everyone who's interested in innovation to join us at the reception and find out firsthand what's behind the current excitement about NFC technology, and to enjoy refreshments with us in a relaxed and informal setting."

The Frankfurt demonstrations will showcase a range of NFC use cases:

• AT4 wireless, an NFC Forum testing partner, will demonstrate its RIDER NFC Test tool for NFC Forum Digital Protocol and Analogue RF specifications; the product incorporates both test suites. The company is interested in meeting NFC ecosystem stakeholders, including device manufacturers, telecommunications operators, and test laboratories, at the Frankfurt event.
• HOTech demonstrations will include NFC FieldService, a data collection and processing solution supporting field service activities; NFC Patrol, for patrol guard and security services management; NFCampus, a management solution applicable to academic and similar environments; and NFC Art Pro, which supports cultural heritage activities and artifacts management.
• ITN International, Inc. will demonstrate the functionality and the business case for deploying and using NFC at events, via its Touch 'N Go Event Solutions. The company's demonstration will also show how cities, convention centers, transportation systems, hotels, restaurants, retailers and event producers can benefit from deploying citywide NFC credentials.
• NEXPERTS will showcase its NFC-enabled mobile wallets for payment instruments such as PayPass and payWave cards as well as membership cards, coupons, tickets, and access credentials. The Next-Generation Wallet combines an open-loop payment system with loyalty features in a single tap.
• Sony Corporation will show attendees a set of healthcare devices from different manufacturers that make use of its NFC Dynamic Tag chip to provide NFC support. Demonstrated devices will include step counters, blood pressure monitors, and weighing scales. The data measured by those devices can then be retrieved by a mobile phone via NFC. Sony will also present an Arduino-based NFC Dynamic Tag evaluation board and an Android library that simplifies the development of applications reading data from those NFC-enabled healthcare devices.
• TUOMI IT SA will demonstrate its NFC-based interactive presentation, information, and verification system for other firms' products, its NFC-based object and service management support system for quality control and external services, and its mobile data collection with NFC and GPS. The company will also show its NFC Smart Posters for children, such as posters with jungle animals, pictures from different countries, or musical instruments.

In addition, WIMA, the leading global conference and exhibition exclusively dedicated to NFC applications, products and services, held in Monaco and the U.S., will be on hand to present information about its upcoming Monaco event (11-13 April, 2012) and the NFC Forum and WIMA Tap Into Innovation: NFC Global Competition 2012.

About the NFC Forum

The NFC Forum (http://www.nfc-forum.org) was launched as a non-profit industry association in 2004 by leading mobile communications, semiconductor, and consumer electronics companies. The Forum’s mission is to advance the use of Near Field Communication technology by developing specifications, ensuring interoperability among devices and services, and educating the market about NFC technology. The Forum’s 160+ global member companies currently are developing specifications for a modular NFC device architecture, and protocols for interoperable data exchange and device-independent service delivery, device discovery, and device capability.

The NFC Forum’s Sponsor members, which hold seats on the Board of Directors, include leading players in key industries around the world. The Sponsor members are: Barclaycard, Broadcom Corporation, INSIDE Secure, Intel, MasterCard Worldwide, Microsoft Corp., NEC, Nokia, NTT DOCOMO, Inc., NXP Semiconductors, Renesas Electronics Corporation, Samsung, Sony Corporation, STMicroelectronics, and Visa Inc.

Canada's Payfirma Updates Its Mobile Payment App in a Big Way

The mobile payment app now has a sleeker design, real-time sales summary, location tagging, and supports multiple languages

VANCOUVER, British Columbia--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Payfirma, the leader of mobile payments for businesses in Canada, announces the availability of the next version of its mobile payment app. The updated app brings a host of new features that make accepting credit cards on iPhones and iPads faster and easier than ever before. The app also boasts a sleeker design that doubles the speed to make transactions.

Created in collaboration with merchants, the focus of this release is on user efficiency, location awareness, and real-time information. Businesses can now access real-time transaction reporting with daily, weekly, and month-to-date sales keeping merchants on top of their business. Each transaction is tagged with the location of the sale, so merchants and their customers can see their transactions on a map, right on their mobile device. This gives small businesses a new set of business intelligence to improve their sales and also increase security.

Payfirma also updated the app to support multiple languages, starting with French. If the operating language is set to French on an iPhone or iPad, Payfirma's app will be automatically rendered in French. This makes the app easier for the French Canadian market and also prepares the app for international expansion.

Research and development has already started for the next version to support the emerging NFC standards and the EMV payments standard, which is popular in Canada and European markets.

About Payfirma

We help businesses accept credit and debit cards in their stores, online and on their mobile devices. Our team designs and develops solutions that bring payments to a new personal and customizable level. We offer a full range of traditional point-of-sale solutions,eCommerce capabilities such as hosted checkout and recurring billing, and at the forefront, our mobile payment suite. Payfirma is a simple solution with top-notch service. To learn more about Payfirma, please visit http://www.payfirma.com, follow us on Twitter@Payfirma, or call us at 800-747-6883.

BillingViews Finds Five Flaws in NFC Mobile Payments Argument, Points to Bigger Opportunity in Machine-to-Machine

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NFC’s close association with mobile payments is “misguided”; communications industry needs to see the “bigger picture” in M2M

Here are our five problems – and one solution:

BillingViews (http://www.BillingViews.com), after examining the scale of investment in NFC, believes there must be a bigger goal than enabling mobile payments. It has identified five major problems that must be overcome in order for NFC to be a catalyst for mobile paymentadoption. The five problems relate to security, presence of terminals, handset availability, messaging and hygiene. BillingViews has also uncovered a greater opportunity for NFC, however, in the explosive growth of machine-to-machine communications.

“Connecting machines will be the next big transformation in how we live,” says Alex Leslie, Publisher of BillingViews. “The machine-to-machine opportunity is as big as the telecoms revolution that occupied the last century,” Leslie says.

Leslie adds that he finds the overwhelming association of NFC as a mobile payments enabler to be “misguided” because of its potential for success in enabling machine to machine communications. “The communications industry needs to see the bigger picture and associate NFC with M2M to understand the true scale of this opportunity. Almost every other industry is inventing and articulating solutions based on M2M technology and many of them will be enhanced by NFC capabilities. Add to those vertical opportunities the huge opportunities for NFC in proximity marketing and opt-in mobile advertising and it is more likely to be the catalyst for truly universal personalized communications and service provision than a payments tool.”

BillingViews has published its findings and perspectives online at http://www.billingviews.com in a new slideshow entitled Five Problems for Near Field Communications…and One Solution.

About BillingViews
BillingViews is the global home for billing, payment, and customer experience information in the communications and media industries. Its goal is to facilitate dialogue between executive level business and IT decision makers and the greater communications and media IT marketplace through focused, data-driven research and publications. BillingViews content is available free at : http://www.billingviews.com.

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MasterCard Introduces U.S. Roadmap to Enable Next Generation of Electronic Payments

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Framework to Deliver Enhanced Consumer Experience In-Store, Online, at the ATM and with Mobile Phones

PURCHASE, N.Y.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--MasterCard today introduced a comprehensive roadmap focused on advancing the U.S. electronic payments system.

As payments continue to evolve to include new devices and new channels, such as mobile and eCommerce, the roadmap takes steps to address how consumers really shop, providing them greater security and control in their payment choices and the potential to seamlessly integrate loyalty programs and offers into the purchasing experience.The roadmap, which includes the path for migration from magnetic stripe to EMV technology currently available on “chip” cards, will serve as the foundation for the next generation of products and services developed to enhance the way consumers pay.

“We’re moving toward a world beyond plastic, where consumers will shop and pay in a way that best fits their needs and lifestyles with a simple tap, click or touch in-store, online or on a mobile device,” said Chris McWilton, President, U.S. Markets, MasterCard. “Our roadmap represents a transformational shift in the approach to payments and is not simply about EMV, chip and PIN. We’re focused on readying the ecosystem to drive future innovation and provide new consumer experiences to enhance the value of electronic payments. ”

Defining the Framework

Elements of the MasterCard roadmap include:

• EMV – Solidifying EMV as the foundation of the next generation of payments
• Immediate focus on acquirer infrastructure – Working with acquirers to ensure infrastructure readiness by April 2013
• Encouraging greater security and cardholder verification – Providing consumers with greater control and to reduce fraudulent transactions
• Provide benefits for merchant terminalization – Providing true financial benefits for merchants as they implement EMV-compatible terminals
• Cover all channels – Addressing all touch points where consumers will interact with MasterCard, including ATMs, the physical point-of-sale, online and mobile commerce
• Commitment to leadership and collaboration – Fostering industry collaboration to deliver the next generation of payments into the U.S. marketplace

In implementing the roadmap, MasterCard will maximize the technology advancements and investments the company has made over 45 years to benefit the payments ecosystem.

“Customers from across the payments ecosystem have been asking for a roadmap,” said McWilton. “We believe we’ve provided issuers and merchants with a vision to ‘future proof’ their businesses and the flexibility to manage their technology decisions to best meet their goals and priorities.”

Foundation for Growth and Enhanced Security

In the increasingly digital world, transactions will get smarter. At the heart of this is dynamic authentication, where each transaction incorporates unique information, making it virtually impossible to replicate and reducing the risk of fraudulent transactions.

As issuers evolve their offering and merchants upgrade their terminals, the payments system will become more secure as this dynamic data is introduced into the payment transaction. MasterCard’s roadmap strongly encourages the adoption of the most secure technologies available.

“Consumers deserve a great experience any time they use MasterCard products,” said Ed McLaughlin, Chief Emerging Payments Officer, MasterCard. “As the industry invests in the upgrade to EMV in the U.S., we now have the ability to enhance the consumer experience and the security of a payment, regardless of the device – contactless card, mobile, eCommerce and technologies still to come.”

Alignment, Collaboration and Leadership for the Road Forward

In its roadmap, MasterCard supports the need for the payments ecosystem to be aligned regarding the implementation of EMV standards in the U.S. The company has indicated it will support current industry timelines in an effort to minimize disruption and to maximize investments across the payments ecosystem.

MasterCard was part of the original group that created the EMV standard and has supported the successful migration to EMV-based payments in nearly every major market globally. The company’s continued investment in advancing these infrastructure standards has provided insights and expertise to guide the industry in advancing payments security and convenience.

“The shift to dynamic data in the transaction process will help ensure greater consistency, security and functionality between the U.S. region and the rest of the globe,” said George Peabody, director, Emerging Technologies Advisory Service, Mercator Advisory Group. “Merchants and issuers need a clear and consistent roadmap for payment card security and innovation. MasterCard’s approach, starting with EMV, will benefit consumers and the industry.”

Additional detail on the roadmap and implementation activities will be provided to MasterCard customers in the coming weeks and months. In the meantime, initial resources can be obtained at www.mastercard.us/mchip-emv.html.

About MasterCard Worldwide

MasterCard (NYSE: MA) is a global payments and technology company. It operates the world’s fastest payments processing network, connecting consumers, financial institutions, merchants, governments and businesses in more than 210 countries and territories. MasterCard’s products and solutions make everyday commerce activities - such as shopping, traveling, running a business and managing finances - easier, more secure and more efficient for everyone. Learn more at www.mastercard.com, follow us on Twitter@mastercardnews or join the conversation on The Heart of Commerce Blog.

Contacts

MasterCard Worldwide
Seth Eisen, 914-249-3153
seth_eisen@mastercard.com

Javelin Says 5.6 Million Americans Switched Banks in Last 90 Days

‘Bank Transfer Day’, What Really Just Happened?

January 26, 2012 | Written by: James Van Dyke

Bank Transfer Day and the Occupy Movement have received tremendous attention, and for the first time we have market research data to measure the impact on the financial services industry. Javelin’s research estimates that 5.6 million U.S. adults with a banking relationship changed providers in the past 90 days. Of those switchers, 610,000 US adults (or 11% of the 5.6 million) cited Bank Transfer Day as their reason and actually moved their accounts from a large to a small institution. With a Google search of “bank transfer day” returning fully 22,000,000 responses we’re not surprised that these angry bank-switchers represent nearly a three-time increase over the amount of people who took their funds out of large banks for highly-similar reasons during the previous 90-day period in 2011.

This exodus was certainly not the massive departure banks might have feared. Javelin’s nine years of customer-transaction research insights has found that people are highly resistant to moving their money, and even Huffington Post’s similarly-positioned 2008 “MoveYourMoneyProject.org” failed to barely even register in previous Javelin surveys. Yet this time, Bank Transfer Day and the Occupy Movement did have a measurable impact.

In comparison to the 11% of actual bank-switchers who cited Bank Transfer Day, 26% of the switchers stated that they switched because the bank charged too many fees during the 90 day measurement period. Individuals frequently state dissatisfaction with banks over reasons that range from customer service to rates and fees, and other common reasons that motivate individuals to switch banks also includes a simple relocation of their primary residence. While financial institutions increasingly enable electronic methods for interacting with one’s money, the transition hasn’t been complete enough to eliminate the essential importance of a local branch or ATM. The transition to electronic money inches steadily forward, but the evolution is far from complete.

Javelin urges banks and credit unions alike to increasingly focus on sustainable mutual-prosperity for both provider and customer, and we believe that technology can increasingly make such a shared-value approach possible. Examples explored by our research range from fee-based services for online expedited payments (to reduce even larger late fees), security and identity protection products, and mobile-based methods for giving individuals more control over what happens to all their financial accounts. Javelin’s recent social media research of financial institutions examines how FIs are meeting consumers on Twitter and in other social media spaces. FIs will need to be agile through social media, smartphones, tablets and other new interaction methods to strengthen customer connections while enabling them with improved control over their personal financial affairs.

As always, Javelin subscribers are invited to inquire for further details on this or any other research study.

Methodology statement:

Using a questionnaire designed independently by Javelin Strategy & Research, the Bank Transfer Day findings are culled from an online survey of 5,878 consumers fielded in December 2011. The survey targeted respondents based on representative proportions of gender, age, income, and ethnicity, and data was weighted to U.S. census proportions. The survey is based on a set of questions that were first fielded in 2003, and are now deployed on a twice-annual basis.

MasterCard Announces Participation in the Goldman Sachs 2012 Technology & Internet Conference and KBW Cards, Payments & Financial Technology Symposium

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PURCHASE, N.Y.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--MasterCard (NYSE: MA) today announced its participation in the following investor conferences:

On Tuesday, February 14, Vicky Bindra, president of MasterCard’s APMEA region, will present at the Goldman Sachs 2012 Technology & Internet Conference in San Francisco. The discussion will begin at 9:40 a.m. Pacific Time (12:40 p.m. Eastern Time) and last for approximately 35 minutes.

On Thursday, February 16, Martina Hund-Mejean, chief financial officer, will present at the KBW Cards, Payments & Financial Technology Symposium in New York. The discussion will begin at 2:05 p.m. Eastern Time and last for approximately 45 minutes.

There will be listen-only live webcasts of each presentation, and replays will be archived for 30 days on the investor relations section of mastercard.com.