C|C Payments Blog

Payments News Update – July 23, 2020

Legal and Regulatory Developments SPOTLIGHT: Open Banking for the Unbanked: How the Pandemic Is Affecting Innovation in LatAm PYMNTS – July 22, 2020 With nearly 50 percent of the Latin American population unbanked, there’s a growing appetite for mobile banking services. And the ongoing pandemic is only accelerating this trend, says Paula Arregui, chief operating officer for Mercado Pago. In the latest...

Payments News Update – July 16, 2020

Legal and Regulatory Developments SPOTLIGHT: UK Tightens Rules on Payments Firms in Wake of Wirecard Debacle PYMNTS – July 9, 2020 The United Kingdom’s financial regulator has toughened rules on payment companies less than two weeks after Wirecard AG’s collapse locked millions of customers out of their accounts, the Financial Times reported. The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) said Thursday (July 9) it...

Payments News Update – July 9, 2020

Legal and Regulatory Developments SPOTLIGHT: Bipartisan Senate Bill Would Punish Retailers for Refusing Cash Payments CNBC – July 2, 2020 Sens. Bob Menendez, D-N.J., and Kevin Cramer, R-N.D., have introduced a bill prohibiting retailers from declining cash payments from customers, as businesses promote “contactless” digital payment as they grapple with the coronavirus pandemic. Retailers and mall owners,...

Payments News Update – July 2, 2020

Legal and Regulatory Developments SPOTLIGHT: EU Says Credit-Card Fee Curbs Helped Reduce Prices for Consumers Bloomberg – June 29, 2020 European Union curbs on credit and debit-card fees helped reduce prices for consumers and aided payments across the 27-nation bloc, regulators said in a report published Monday. “Interchange fees for consumer cards have decreased, leading to reduced merchants’ charges for...

Payments News Update – June 25, 2020

Legal and Regulatory Developments SPOTLIGHT: Apple’s Easy Ride From U.S. Authorities May Be Over Politico – June 24, 2020 The Justice Department and a coalition of state attorneys general are taking the first steps toward launching an antitrust probe of Apple, turning the iPhone-maker into the latest Silicon Valley giant to face legal jeopardy in Washington, three people involved in the discussions told...

Payments News Update – June 18, 2020

Legal and Regulatory Developments SPOTLIGHT: With a Loss Before Britain’s High Court, Visa and Mastercard Face an Interchange Reckoning Digital Transactions News – June 17, 2020 Merchants in the United Kingdom won an important battle against interchange fees on Wednesday but it remains uncertain just how much that will mean to them in terms of remuneration from Visa Inc. and Mastercard Inc. The case also...

Payments News Update – June 12, 2020

Legal and Regulatory Developments SPOTLIGHT: 'Fraud' Lawsuit Slams Plaid on Eve of Historic $5.3-Billion Payday RIABiz – June 9, 2020 As Plaid nears the date when it banks a $5.3 billion dollar check from Visa, it may face a final hurdle from a class action alleging its value proposition depends on a "massive invasion" of the privacy of over 200 million bank and brokerage accounts. Filed on May 5, the...

Payments News Update – June 4, 2020

Legal and Regulatory Developments SPOTLIGHT: How PayPal’s Case Against the CFPB Could Spawn ‘Uncomfortable’ Results for Payments Players  Digital Transactions News – June 2, 2020 It was easy to lose track of it in the midst of all the impacts of the novel coronavirus, but a crucial federal lawsuit filed six months ago still hangs over the payments industry, carrying far-reaching implications for nearly...

Payments News Update – May 28, 2020

Legal and Regulatory Developments SPOTLIGHT: French Anti-Trust Watchdog Shines a Light on Fintech Finextra – May 27, 2020

France's competition authority has launched a public consultation into the fintech sector, with a focus on payment services. The payments sector is being upended by a combination of new technologies, such as mobile phones and blockchain, and new players, both fintech startups and big tech...

Payments News Update - May 21, 2020

Legal and Regulatory Developments SPOTLIGHT: Retailers and Wholesalers Call for Urgent Amendment of Card Fees Regulation Finextra – May 18, 2020 EuroCommerce Director-General Christian Verschueren today pressed the European Commission to act on the growing problems facing retailers and wholesalers resulting from the limited scope of the Interchange Fee Regulation (IFR). He asked for firm proposals to amend...