Using mobile phones as cash is put to the test in Europe

By Victoria Shannon

Published: November 11, 2007

PARIS: Don’t look now, but the French are in the technology vanguard again. A dozen major companies have opened the largest trial outside of Asia for the use of cellphones as mobile money – giving consumers the ability to pay for everything from croissants and toothpaste to subway fare and wine with a wave of a handset …

Obama Speaks out on Credit Card  

But many more Americans aren’t falling into debt because they made an irresponsible decision; they’re falling into debt because credit card companies are pushing them over the edge. For too long, credit card companies have been using unfair and deceptive practices to trick Americans into signing agreements they can’t afford. The contracts you sign when you get a card have gone from being one page-long a few decades ago to more than thirty pages-long today. And they’re often filled with traps and fine print that only a credit card executive could understand. These companies have been crossing the line to boost their bottom line. 

Unisys Research Reveals

Most Consumers Worldwide Won’t Use Mobile Devices to Conduct Financial Transactions

Majority unconvinced that mobile devices are safe for shopping and banking Banks, Telco’s and retailers must collaborate to increase adoption of mobile payments

BLUE BELL, Pa., – June 10, 2008 – The cell phone is practically universal, with more than 3.3 billion subscribers worldwide, yet 71 percent of all consumers surveyed in 14 countries will not consider using a mobile device to bank or shop online, according to a study released today by Unisys Corporation (NYSE: UIS).

 Hope for Mobile Payments Standards

By Maria Bruno-Britz Jun 4, 2008 at 02:10 PM ET 

It looks like the mobile channel just found a standards champion—the Financial Services Technology Consortium (FSTC). The organization announced it is assembling a team of industry experts to help develop best practices and standards for mobile payments.

A Look at Dynamic Credit Cards

Pittsburgh’s Pop City e-magazine reports on Dynamics, LLC, a a startup emerging from Carnegie-Mellon’s Project Olympus. The company’s initial product focus is on a dynamic credit card that uses a computer on the card to “periodically changes several digits of the card number, making it impossible for anyone to capture or copy the number and reuse it.” A presentation is available online.

UK consumers reject mobile payments

Security is a major hindrance, says study - written by Angelica Mari – Computing, 23 May 2008

The majority of UK consumers are not interested in using their mobile handsets for e-commerce due to security concerns, according to researchers.

Concept for world’s poor aids richest nation on earth

updated 7:57 a.m. EDT, Thu May 22, 2008 NEW YORK (CNN)

Story Highlights

• The Grameen Bank, which began in Bangladesh, won the 2006 Nobel Peace Prize
• Now the bank has set its sights on helping the poverty-stricken in America
• Founder says credit is a basic human right
• 97 percent of bank’s borrowers are women

 A bank operating on a concept that has lifted thousands of people out of grinding poverty in the developing world has set its sights on helping the poverty-stricken in America.

McAfee Question Contactless Payment Security

Writes Dan Drage dan.drage@consumerchoices.co.uk

It is estimated that by 2011 around 50 million people will be utilising contactless payment technologies, but are they safe?

Leading IT security specialist McAfee has called into question the safety of contactless payments. Contactless payments are those made with your mobile phone via SMS messages or the ‘wave and pay’ method. Effectively, your mobile phone takes on a triumvirate role of debit card, oyster card and cash.

Disruption in the Payments World

Boston, MA, USA May 7, 2008R eport Published by Celent

This particular article begs the question of Interchange decline, emergence of new payment methods backed by major financial institutions and merchants playing a musch larger role in defining the rules and regulations.

The Early Experience with Branchless Banking will be presented at the GSMA Mobile Money Summit in Cairo and is available online at http://www.cgap.org. 

Mobile NFC moves closer to the money

John Walko EE Times  (05/05/2008 6:06 PM EDT)

MONTE CARLO, Monaco — A technology that has the potential to replace money is bound to excite interest. Near Field Communications (NFC) is such a technology, but the security, software complexity and vested interests surrounding the hardware engineering have kept the technology from making its way into commercial applications—until now…

Mobile Banking to Transform Microfinance

Sunday, May 04, 2008 - Fox Business