New Product Launches

99Bill to launch Automatic Reload payment service

99Bill is a provider of independent electronic payment services. The company has announced that it will formally release Automatic Reload payment service at the sixth China Digital Entertainment Expo and Conference, which will be held in Shanghai New International Expo Center, from 17 to 19 July 2008. The company stated that by comparing with using physical prepaid card, consumers can use 99Bill to linkup his or her bank cards with game login account and set automatic reload limit.

The company mentioned that the new service can further improve the average revenue per user (ARPU) and enhance user paying experience. The company added that this service can increase AUPU by as much as four times for active game users.

Source: Datamonitor

Citi launches Octopus credit card in Hong Kong

Citi, in association with Octopus Cards, launched Octopus travel and credit card in Hong Kong on 18 July 2008. The company mentioned that customers can use Octopus card at more than 50,000 terminals to travel by public transport and make low value contactless payments at participating retail outlets.

Director of Cards Business, Citibank Global Consumer Group, Neil Gardner said "This co-brand card puts the two of us at the forefront of the e-money market and we are very confident that the card will be well received by the market as it is a unique transport-retail payment card that allows customers to manage all their needs.”

Source: www.remittancedirectory.com

ICBC launches China's first dual interface Visa EMV card

The Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC), in partnership with local retailer Parkson, has begun issuing to customers, the country's first dual interface Visa cards for contact-based and contactless payments, from 17 July 2008. The company mentioned that users can make low-value payments by swiping their cards across specially equipped contactless POS terminals.

The company stated that it plans to issue tens of thousands of the Peony Parkson credit cards this year. This is a significant step taken towards wide-scale migration to international standards for chip-based payment methods in China.

Source: www.remittancedirectory.com

ChargeSmart introduces new credit card bill payment solution

ChargeSmart LLC, a provider of online payment solutions to the financial and mortgage industries, announced the launch of its comprehensive Web-based payment service on 09 July 2008. This service allows consumers to pay their mortgage, auto and education loans as well as utility bills using major credit cards.

Co-founder of ChargeSmart, Mitch Friedman said “Our offering is perfect for the individual who may experience an unexpected lifestyle change such as a temporary income interruption or fluctuation, or for the savvy consumer who wants to earn rewards for the ease of using his or her credit card for payment. Our solution's benefits are twofold: billers receive payments on time, every time, and it is a good financial tool for certain borrowers to meet payment deadlines and avoid late fees that negatively impact credit scores.”

Source: www.remittancedirectory.com

edo Interactive launches Facecard Prepaid MasterCard, a financial tool for young adults

edo Interactive is a pioneer in the development of technologies that utilise pre-existing payments' infrastructure and modern social networking communities for digital marketing purposes. This company introduced the Facecard Prepaid MasterCard® that will offer an incentivised payment option to 82 million youngesters). Facecard is accepted wherever Debit MasterCard is accepted and is combined with advertiser-issued Prewards™ and edoCash™.

CEO, Ed Braswell said “Facecard fixes the dilemma that exists for parents who want to teach millennials about financial literacy but protect them from financial danger. As a parent, one can monitor spending habits and because overspending is not possible, there are no more surprises when they see overdraft fees on their statement.”

Source: www.remittancedirectory.com

ARY SpeedRemit, Krores to launch remittance card

ARY SpeedRemit, a global money transfer company, has entered into a tie-up with Krores, a global prepaid card solutions provider, for the launch of ARY Krores (remittance) card. The strategic alliance was signed between Praveen Chandiramani, CEO of ARY SpeedRemit and Vineet Katial, CMD of Krores Ltd.

The company mentioned that the card is specially designed for the Gulf emigrants and their families back home. In the initial phases, this service will be available exclusively to emigrants hailing from India and Philippines. This gradually will expand to other countries in the sub-continent.

Source: www.khaleejtimes.com

Earthport signs contract with TransSend to enhance prepaid offering

Earthport, a global payments utility, has signed a contract with TransSend, a prepaid card provider, to enhance its prepaid offering. TransSend is the prepaid card division of Conister Financial Group and works in partnership with its issuing bank Conister Trust, a principal member of MasterCard. This close relationship between program manager and bank, gives TransSend a strong competitive edge in delivering robust, secure and commercially successful card programs.

Earthpoint mentioned that the integration process between the companies is at an advanced stage and that both companies expect the first transactions to be processed in the near future. Earthport will provide global card - loading and unloading, together with global payments and remittances. According to this agreement, subsequent projects will include Affiliate Commission Payments for the leisure industry, payroll and remittance solutions for the Middle East region with financial institutions.

Source: Datamonitor

Western Union renews agent contract with Banco do Brasil

Western Union, a provider of global money-transfer services, has renewed its contract of agency with Banco do Brasil. The company mentioned that its agent relationship with Banco do Brasil dates back to 1997. Through this renewed five-year contract, Western Union will maintain a network of 5,400 Banco do Brasil agent locations throughout Brazil, thus, retaining its reach and presence across the country.

Senior Vice President and Managing Director for Western Union's South America region, Odilon Almeida said "As our company continues its aggressive global expansion, both organically and through profitable acquisitions, it is extremely important that we preserve the strong relationships we have with our existing agents throughout the world.”

Source: Datamonitor

InCard enters into product procurement agreement with Gemalto

Innovative Card Technologies, which provides InCard DisplayCard for e-banking, e-commerce and secure data access, announced that it has entered an agreement with Gemalto, a provider of digital security. Based on client orders, Gemalto has made purchase commitments to Innovative Card Technologies. This agreement will help Gemalto reduce lead times for deployment of InCard DisplayCard in enterprises and financial institutions.

Vice President and General Manager of Security for Gemalto North America, Francois Lasnier said “InCard provides an attractive technology - the OTP in credit card form - that is well adapted for the needs of enterprises and financial institutions. Gemalto is also providing personalization and fulfillment services to facilitate the deployment of the technology by customers and its adoption by end-users.”

Source: CBR Online

www.jtv.com partners with PayPal

Jewelry Television(TM) announced that it has partnered with PayPal. Under the agreement Jewelry Television's website, www.jtv.com, will now accept PayPal for purchases of jewelry, gemstones and other collectibles.. This alliance was finalised after reviewing consumer research, which concluded that majority of online consumers in the US purchase only from websites with PayPal as payment option as they have high level trust with PayPal.

Jewelry Television Senior Vice President, E-Commerce, James Thome said “Adding PayPal as a payment option gives our customers more choices and greater convenience. PayPal's millions of customers can now experience the unparalleled selection and value available at http://www.jtv.com.”

Source: PR Newswire

Rosetta Stone appoints GlobalCollect as preferred payment service provider

Rosetta Stone announced the appointment of GlobalCollect as the preferred payment service provider for its e-commerce transactions. Since 2007, GlobalCollect has been facilitating the payment processing e-commerce activities of Rosetta Stone in Europe and Japan. This alliance will be extended to the company's primary website www.RosettaStone.com.

Rosetta Stone Chief Investment Officer, Jay Topper, said “We are pleased to expand our partnership with GlobalCollect as they continue to provide us with a consistent, integrated and cost-effective solution for managing our online payments over a single platform on a worldwide basis.”

Source: Datamonitor

Global Payments Inc. And The CashLINQ Group Renew Payment Processing Services Agreement

Global Payments, Inc. announced that The CashLINQ Group, a merchant services provider and Independent Sales Organization (ISO), has agreed to extend its long-term relationship with the Company for payment processing services. It mentioned that through its new multi-year agreement, the company will continue to provide The CashLINQ Group with a comprehensive line of payment card authorization and settlement services, as well as customized merchant support services for The CashLINQ Group's market base of non-profit and faith-based merchants. ”

Source: Reuters