ANNOUNCEMENTSAlchemy Pay acquired a money transmitter license in Arkansas,, enabling its compliant crypto payment services in the state. The license allows Alchemy Pay to engage in activities related to payment instruments, stored value, prepaid access and virtual currency receipt. This achievement, Alchemy Pay stated, reflects its commitment to securing local licenses in key global markets. Alchemy Pay is also pursuing licenses in the UK and Hong Kong and recently gained recognition from Visa and Mastercard as an approved third-party service provider.
Clip Money Inc. raised $4.9 million through a non-brokered private placement of common shares and $6.1 million through secured convertible notes. Cardtronics Inc., a subsidiary of NCR Corp., invested a total of $10 million in Clip Money. The investment coincides with a long-term partnership between Clip Money and NCR to enhance business cash deposit solutions with cardless cash deposit API and cash in network capabilities, expanding access to Clip Money's services for U.S. businesses regardless of their bank's branch presence, Clip Money stated.
Rebag, a luxury accessory trading platform, launched a consignment service, complementing its existing trade and buyout options. The service offers sellers upfront quotes, pre-approved payouts, fixed commission rates and quick payments, eliminating ambiguity and lengthy processes, Rebag stated. Sellers can submit images or use Rebag's Clair technology to determine the fair value of an item before sending it for evaluation. Rebag noted that it offers competitive commission rates, as low as 8 percent, and sellers can benefit from premium payouts, which increase by 1 percent per month for up to 12 months.
Ubiquity, a business process outsourcer, released a white paper aimed at helping European fintechs use outsourcing to adapt to rapidly changing market conditions. The paper addresses challenges and opportunities facing fintech scaleups in Europe as they navigate ongoing economic uncertainty, budget constraints, recruitment and retention issues, and increased transaction volumes.
It also explores the buy versus build decision for customer experience and the potential of AI in fintech workflows. The white paper also offers guidance from fintech leaders and commentators on leveraging outsourcing for growth and cost efficiency.
RESEARCHA study by Juniper Research predicts that global digital commerce transaction volumes will reach 1.08 trillion by next year, up from 966 billion this year, marking a 12 percent growth in a single year. The strongest growth is expected in NFC payments (30 percent), digital ticketing (19 percent), and physical goods purchases (12 percent).
The increase in contactless acceptance, particularly within transit, has driven the surge in NFC payments; open-loop payment systems in ticketing have also boosted contactless adoption in markets that previously lagged behind; and to differentiate themselves, vendors in competitive markets should focus on reducing payment costs, researchers found.
LexisNexis Risk Solutions released its annual True Cost of Financial Crime Compliance Report, revealing that financial institutions globally bear a total cost of $206.1 billion for compliance. While 71 percent of professionals in financial crime compliance are utilizing advanced analytics and AI, data quality issues, data silos, outdated systems and internal collaboration challenges create avoidable compliance activity and expenses, researchers found. The study also noted that EMEA financial institutions and customers face higher compliance costs compared to other regions, driven by complex complex requirements.
The Payments Association presented its report titled Navigating the rising cost of living: Payments innovation as a game-changer to MPs and regulatory body representatives in the UK Parliament. The report identifies three groups of people newly at risk of financial exclusion due to the rising cost of living and makes recommendations for building a more resilient and inclusive financial system in the UK.
The report discusses the potential of fintech and payments innovations, such as AI and open banking, to support these groups and calls for collaboration between the public, private, and third sectors to provide more inclusive, accessible and affordable financial services.
The global multifactor authentication (MFA) market is projected to grow at a CAGR of 15.20 percent from 2023 to 2030, reaching US $40.01 billion by 2030, according to Verified Market Research. Key drivers include increasing security threats, industry expansion, emerging trends, and digital transformation.
Small and midsize businesses are adopting MFA to combat security breaches and cyberattacks. Sectors like healthcare, retail, and banking are driving demand for authentication systems, while IoT and cloud-based services are opening new growth avenues.
PARTNERSHIPSPayment software provider AFSOL chose Fime as a strategic partner for payment digitalization. The five-year partnership will see Fime offer consultancy and testing services to ensure compliance with nexo standards and major global payment scheme requirements. Fime will test AFSOL's payment terminal solution to align with nexo Implementation Specifications (NIS) v4.0, increasing user trust in payment acceptance solutions by ensuring interoperability. AFSOL aims to provide open, universal, cost-effective payment solutions, emphasizing the adoption of open standards. The collaboration is geared toward creating forward-looking solutions adaptable to emerging payment methods.
Bluefin, a provider of encryption and tokenization technologies, integrated Mastercard Click to Pay to offer seamless checkout options. The integration allows merchants to provide a frictionless shopping experience by eliminating the need for customers to manually enter card details, Bluefin stated, adding that merchants can securely store payment information using encrypted virtual card numbers. Bluefin's first integrated partner for this functionality is MyChart powered by Epic, addressing payment collection use cases in healthcare. The solution stores card details via tokenization, simplifying payments while maintaining security, Bluefin said.
Cubic Transportation Systems partnered with Sault Ste. Marie Transit to launch the Umo platform in Ontario, Canada. Umo, the partners stated, offers a convenient, efficient fare payment system, allowing riders to use contactless payments through Umo smartcards or the Umo Mobility app. The Umo system includes smart card bus passes and digital transfers for passenger convenience, while also integrating mechanical fareboxes for cash payments. This collaboration aims to streamline boarding processes and enhance the overall transit experience in Sault Ste. Marie. It is supported by funding from the Investing in Canada Infrastructure Program.
Ingenico and Diggecard joined forces to offer gift card services on Ingenico's cloud Payments Platform as a Service (PPaaS). Diggecard's white-label technology will enable merchants to access a range of self-managed gift card services, simplifying the integration process, the partners stated. Smaller merchants can now use Diggecard-operated gift cards in innovative ways, such as reimbursing customers instead of providing cash, creating new revenue opportunities; for Ingenico's clients, including banks and acquirers, this collaboration helps boost merchant loyalty and revenue growth, the partners added.
WH Smith North America is partnering with Blackhawk Network to introduce Gift Card Malls in airports, casino resorts and shopping centers across the United States. Over 300 unique-banner airport stores will offer Gift Card Malls, making WHSNA one of the first U.S. airport retailers to provide third-party gift cards.
The centralized Gift Card Malls offer shoppers hundreds of gifting and shopping options, including prepaid cards like Visa and Mastercard, BHN's exclusive Original Content, and more, the partners noted. The partnership aims to enhance the shopping experience for travelers and shoppers while expanding BHN's network of retailers.
ACQUISITIONSActionstep, a cloud practice management platform for midsize law firms, acquired Soluno, a legal accounting software company, from AffiniPay. This acquisition will integrate Soluno's accounting software with Actionstep's practice management platform with the goal of creating a unified solution for midsize law firms in the United States and Canada. Customers can use both products separately or access the integrated platform.
Actionstep aims to enhance its offerings and modernize midsize law firms by combining innovative practice management technology with advanced accounting capabilities.
Recharge, a specialist in prepaid payments, acquired Startselect, a European digital gift and gaming cards company. This move is expected to position Recharge to achieve €750 million (US $800) in annual sales by 2024. Recharge stated it has been growing aggressively since 2010 by offering easy online purchases of digital prepaid cards, and this acquisition strengthens its diversified prepaid product offerings, especially in the gaming cards market. It is also part of the company's strategy to consolidate the digital prepaid payments market and expand its global leadership position, with plans for more acquisitions in the next year, Recharge added.
APPOINTMENTSSolutions by Text appointed Nick Babinsky as its chief product officer to lead product innovation and strategic direction. Babinsky has overseen product management teams that have scaled innovative ACH and card-based software solutions, while also orchestrating successful partnerships with global banking and fintech entities. Operating in private and public company leadership roles, he played a pivotal part in Billtrust's ascent as a leader in B2B payments, SBT stated. SBT added that Babinsky's leadership will help the company advance in the realm of frictionless payments via text messaging.
ACAMS appointed Mariah Gause as interim chief executive officer, replacing Scott Liles, who is stepping down as CEO. Gause, who serves as the company's chief operating officer and a member of its board of directors, brings over 20 years of finance and business transformation experience to ACAMS. She joined the organization in 2020 and has played a key role in its growth and initiatives, ACAMS stated, adding that it is a leading international membership organization focused on anti-financial crime education and best practices, with over 100,000 members across 180 jurisdictions.
Arteria AI, a provider of enterprise digital documentation infrastructure, appointed Donna Mansfield as strategic account director. Mansfield, a former managing director at Goldman Sachs with almost three decades of experience, brings exceptional insights into the needs and pressures of today's financial institutions, Arteria AI stated. In her new role, she will continue to build and foster client relationships, sharing their vision and serving as a partner and champion to ensure seamless integrations that meet their needs. 
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