NEWSIn May 2011, prepaid card processor Fidelity National Information Services Inc. (FIS) approximated the loss from a data breach at $13 million. According to the blog KrebsonSecurity, and based on information blogger Brian Krebs obtained from sources apparently close to the investigation, fraudsters hacked into the FIS network and stole information on 22 prepaid card accounts. This led to a March 5, 2011, withdrawal of $13 million from ATMs in Europe, Greece and Russia.
With unauthorized access to FIS' Sunrise platform, the fraudsters were able to reload the cards remotely for repeated withdrawals from the ATMs on that day, Krebs said. The blog post is available at www.krebsonsecurity.com/2011/08/coordinated-atm-heist-nets-thieves-13m/.
CashCase prepaid card provider Touchdown Prepaid, in collaboration with global prepaid card company Rev Worldwide, launched what the companies call Europe's first multiple currency travel card. The CashCase Visa Prepaid Card allows users to move money between British pounds, euros and U.S. dollars. The chip and PIN-enabled card permits travelers to lock in exchange rates before they embark on journeys.
The global trade organization Prepaid International Forum reported its India chapter will implement prepaid card programs to accelerate expansion of the products across the South Asia country. The first rollouts will be focused on expanding the use of government benefits cards and on promoting prepaid cards as alternative financial tools for India's unbanked, PIF said.
ANNOUNCEMENTSAmerican Express Co. entered the virtual gifting realm with the American Express eGift Card for online purchase and use. Like the physical American Express Gift Card, the virtual card comes with no activation, balance check or monthly maintenance fees, as well as no expiration dates, AmEx said.
The Bancorp Bank, a subsidiary of The Bancorp Inc. and founding member of the Network Branded Prepaid Card Association, plans to sponsor the 2012 NBPCA Annual Congress, called The Power of Prepaid, to be held June 3 through 5 in Washington.
Inc. magazine ranked health care benefits card processor Evolution Benefits Inc. (which became Evolution1 upon its merger with Lighthouse1 LLC) at number 1,528 on the fifth annual Inc. 500|5000 list of the nation's fastest-growing private companies.
Nexon America, the U.S. division of online free-to-play game developer Nexon Corp., began distributing Karma Koin prepaid cards to replace Nexon Game Cards. While the card functionality will remain the same, Nexon intends to eventually expand Karma Koin Card into a payment platform.
Incentive and reward card processor Parago Inc. unveiled the Parago Reward Ordering Portal, a proprietary online platform that provides large organizations a centralized hub for ordering, loading, activating and customizing Visa-branded prepaid cards.
The Canadian Intellectual Property Office granted prepaid telecom card provider SelectCore Ltd. license to use ReCash as the brand name for its reload network. SelectCore reported it is still working on its patent pending technology that will power ReCash.
UniRush LLC said it introduced a free mobile phone application that offers RushCard users balance inquiries and transaction histories on Apple Inc. iPhones and other smart phones that run on Google Inc.'s Android operating system.
24/7 Card, a Los Angeles-based financial services company promoted by boxing champion and Philippine congressman Manny Pacquiao, started the Ambassador Program – a prepaid card pilot aimed at Filipinos and other minorities living in the United States.
Online prepaid card provider Wolfe LLC, through its subsidiary Wolfe Rewards & Loyalty, unveiled a restricted authorization network card program that limits Discover Network-branded SelectSpend rewards cards to select merchants in a particular merchant categories or geographic regions.
PARTNERSHIPSPennsylvania payments solution provider Alpha Card Services Inc. chose stored-value account processor SparkBase for its merchant loyalty and gift card program. Alpha Card is also offering SparkBase's new Paycloud mobile loyalty and marketing program, which enables smart phones to become mobile wallets delivering rewards, coupons and promotions.
Atlanta-headquartered prepaid card distributor InComm, via its Hampshire, England-based division InComm Europe, inked a deal with video game retailer the GAME Group PLC to distribute gift cards through Clinton Cards stores in the U.K.
Restaurant.com and Coinstar Inc. joined to offer a coin to certificate program. For every $10 in coins cashed in at Coinstar kiosks, consumers can receive a $25 virtual certificate redeemable at over 18,000 restaurants in Restaurant.com's national network.
Gibraltar-based prepaid card issuer Transact Network Ltd. is now providing bank identification number (BIN) sponsorship for White Eagle (Europe) PLC, a prepaid program manager in the U.K. White Eagle said it migrated over a dozen prepaid card programs to Transact Network's BIN in less than 12 months.
Social network game developer Zynga Inc. and prepaid card distributor epay teamed to distribute Zynga's prepaid game cards to retailers in 18 countries across Europe, making it the first time the cards will be available in many of the countries, according to epay.
ACQUISITIONSSaratoga Electronic Solutions Inc., a financial services company in Montreal, agreed to sell its calling card subsidiary Distributions Car-Tel Inc. to Luc Charlebois, a member of Car-Tel management, for approximately $1.36 million. Saratoga Electronic Solutions said the prepaid cellular and long distance card market in Canada reached maturity in 2010.
Vienna, Austria-based Paysafecard.com Wertkarten AG, the holding company of paysafecard group, purchased Haarlem, The Netherlands-based Wallie card provider Wallie Holding International Payment Services B.V., to expand its prepaid card programs in Europe.
APPOINTMENTSMetropolitan National Bank, a New York City-based community bank, tapped Al Botta for the position of Senior Vice President at the bank and Senior Vice President, Marketing & Operations, CashZone. At the CashZone prepaid program management subsidiary, Botta is expected to grow the bank's prepaid card business.
Green Dot Corp. hired marketing and branding expert Eric Duehring as General Manager of its Card Business Unit. Duehring will oversee the sales of Green Dot-branded cards in retail and online markets, in addition to related Green Dot marketing activities.
White-label reward and gift card processor SparkBase appointed Ted Frank Chief Operating Officer. Frank comes to SparkBase from JumpStart, an online gaming site for children, where he was a venture partner who worked with emerging technology companies.
Prepaid program management service provider Wave Crest Group hired Chris Mason to the position of Managing Director, Europe. Mason was formerly Managing Director of AIBMS, a joint venture between First Data Corp. and Allied Irish Banks.
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