ANNOUNCEMENTSBlueStar earned Star Micronics' 2023 Distributor of the Year Award for the United States, Canada, Latin America and Mexico. The award recognizes exceptional sales growth and performance in reseller business development. BlueStar has consistently set new benchmarks in exceeding expectations and in establishing new standards for supporting the reseller channel, Star Micronics stated, adding that BlueStar's commitment to delivering technologically advanced solutions, superior sales support and services meets the growing demands of the market exceptionally well.
CanPay, a payment network for cannabis transactions, stated it enhanced its platform with faster, more secure bank linking capabilities, simplifying sign-up processes for more than 1,100 participating dispensaries and their customers across 30 states. Its app facilitates purchases at cannabis retailers via direct debit from checking accounts, now accessible through over 14,000 financial institutions, CanPay added. Offering stability and legitimacy, CanPay noted, ensures reliability amid industry challenges.
The Electronic Transaction Association and Discover Global Network heralded the 2024 Forty Under 40 honorees and the 10 high-potential professionals selected for the 2024 ETA Young Payments Professionals Scholars (YPP) Program. The Forty Under 40 awards celebrate industry trailblazers and innovators; the YPP Program connects scholars with mentorship and resources, including access to ETA industry events and networking opportunities. All honorees will be celebrated at ETA TRANSACT, April 17 to 19 in Las Vegas. To see the list of recipients, visit etatransact.com/awards-transact-2024/.
The U.S. Faster Payments Council (FPC) released Financial Inclusion for Cross-Border Remittances and Bill Payment, a comprehensive resource developed by its Work Groups that aims to enhance financial inclusion through faster cross-border payments. Marking progress toward the FPC's mission and addressing challenges in global financial inclusion, the report highlights issues in cross-border transactions and offers strategies for improvement. FPC Chair Gail Hillebrand emphasized transparency, affordability and security in financially inclusive products.
The ATM Industry Association (ATMIA) gave OptConnect the ATMIA Outstanding Service Award, acknowledging its leadership in managed wireless services for the ATM industry. OptConnect CEO Chris Baird credited the company's customer care team for their dedication, reinforcing OptConnect's reputation for technological innovation and exceptional customer service. OptConnect's customer care team's achievements include resolving over 29,000 cases with a 98 percent first-call resolution rate and providing 24/7/365 support, OptConnect added.
Visa (NYSE: V) and the GSMA Mobile for Development Foundation announced the Digital Finance for All (DFA) Initiative to enhance global financial inclusion. Over five years, it aims to benefit 20 million individuals, including women, smallholder farmers (SHFs), and micro-enterprise owners in Africa, Asia, and Latin America. Despite a 66 percent increase in digital payments in low- and middle-income countries since 2014, certain groups still face barriers to financial services.
RESEARCHEngage People, a loyalty network facilitating pay with points (PwP) transactions at checkout, said it witnessed a 68 percent surge in transactions from 2022, with over 23.3 billion points redeemed in 2023 through its Access Plus network. In addition, the company stated, total sales grew by over 48 percent year-over-year. Engage CEO Jonathan Silver also noted that consumers' growing preference for PwP has led to new partnerships and growth to 53 million members.
Klarna reported that 96 percent of buy now, pay later (BNPL) purchases during the 2023 U.S. Black Friday weekend were paid on time or early, with 30 percent paid off ahead of schedule, a rise from 24 percent in 2022. U.S. Black Friday orders surged by 30 percent year over year, indicating a shift toward healthier payment options, Klarna stated. The company also pointed to the growing acceptance of BNPL, with over 37 million U.S. users, a 32 percent increase year over year, including a notable rise among shoppers over 50.
In January 2024, global ransomware attacks dropped by 27 percent compared to the December 2023 total of 285 cases, NCC Group reported. However, year-on-year attacks surged by 73 percent, marking a steep rise over three years. The Lockbit scheme maintained its lead with 22 percent of cases, while 8Base and Akira climbed to second and third positions, researchers noted, adding that attack numbers fell across all regions, with North America and Europe remaining the most targeted. Industrials faced the most attacks, up 96 percent from the previous year, NCC stated.
Nuvei Corp. published a white paper that emphasizes the pivotal role strategic payment optimization can play in boosting ecommerce revenue by up to 30 percent. Based on research involving more than 300 global merchants and interviews with payments leaders, researchers found a significant problem respondents cited was high decline rates resulting in substantial lost transactions and cart abandonment. The white paper provides actionable insights, strategies, case studies and scorecards to aid businesses in maximizing payment effectiveness to address this and other issues that affect profitability.
PARTNERSHIPSAevi and Silverflow partnered to offer European and North American acquirers a modern payment processing solution with a flexible payment acceptance infrastructure. The solution features real-time data, cross-channel capabilities that can empower tech-minded banks to excel in digital payments, the partners stated. Anne-Willem de Vries, CEO of Silverflow, emphasized that the partnership benefits regional banks, enabling them to reinvent their payment operations. Mike Camerling, CEO of Aevi, mentioned the collaboration is a step toward full digitization, eliminating friction points and empowering clients to leverage data effectively.
Emphasizing the importance of trust and security in the digital economy, AtData expanded its global fraud prevention partner network to combat digital threats, adding five key partners in the past year.
Collaborating with Darwinium, Infinyt, nSure.ai, Persona, and Spec, among others, AtData thwarts emerging email fraud schemes by enhancing email address intelligence to identify high-risk email domains, identify malicious users and detect fraud at digital entry points, the company stated.
Bluefin and Nexxchange are collaborating to introduce SmartPOS and unattended payment solutions to golf courses, hospitality venues and resorts worldwide. By leveraging Bluefin's payment platform, Nexxchange aims to elevate customer experiences with cutting-edge payment solutions, seamlessly integrating with the latest SmartPOS devices. This setup, the partners stated, enables Nexxchange to manage closed-loop and open-loop payments, including major card brands like Visa, Mastercard and American Express, along with national debit card schemes.
Taulia partnered with the International Finance Corp. to establish sustainable supply chain finance programs for small and midsize enterprises (SMEs) in emerging markets. With the IFC as Taulia's inaugural multilateral funder, the collaboration aims to provide diverse funding sources and hedge against economic uncertainty through its multifunder models. Leveraging IFC's global reach and expertise in ESG financing and Taulia's technology, the partnership is expected to enhance access to financing solutions for SMEs and offer financial discounts linked to environmental and social performance improvements among supply chain partners.
ACQUISITIONVencanna Ventures Inc. changed its name from Top Strike Resources Corp. to Vencanna Ventures Inc., and executed a second amended and restated definitive unit exchange agreement with The Cannavative Group LLC amending the agreement originally entered into on April 25, 2022, and subsequently amended and restated on Aug. 16, 2023. Pursuant to the newly amended agreement, Vencanna will acquire all outstanding membership units of Cannavative through an all-share exchange. The transaction is expected to result in materially less dilution than was contemplated in earlier agreements.
APPOINTMENTSPatrick Conner, CEO of ATMPartMart.com, was appointed chair of the NAC board of directors, succeeding George Sarantopoulos. Conner, with 25 years of ATM industry experience, pledged to advocate for universal cash acceptance, innovation in ATM solutions and other issues of importance to the industry. He also acknowledged Sarantopoulos' service and vowed to continue NAC's mission of supporting ATM operators and suppliers. Sarantopoulos expressed confidence in Conner's leadership, and NAC Executive Director Bruce Renard praised Conner's insights and technical expertise.
Nick Stallone was promoted to managing director of strategy and governance, risk and compliance (GRC) at MorganFranklin Consulting's cybersecurity practice. Since joining the firm in 2019, Stallone has expanded its cybersecurity and GRC expertise and led design and implementation of information security governance and risk management. During more than 15 years serving top corporations like JPMorgan and Citigroup, Stallone guided Fortune 500 enterprises through cybersecurity strategy and compliance initiatives, the firm noted, adding that his commitment to excellence drives premier cybersecurity services tailored to client needs.
Utimaco reported that Tina Stewart, known for her strategic storytelling and extensive cybersecurity experience, is the company's new chief marketing officer. With a rich background spanning over two decades in firms such as AWS and Thales, the company noted, Stewart excels in market dominance and integrated strategies and is expected to enhance Utimaco's global presence, amplifying brand recognition and driving demand generation through seamless marketing-sales integration. Stewart stated she aims to further Utimaco's pioneering role in cybersecurity, fostering innovation amid digital challenges.
Stax Payments appointed Mark Sundt as chief technology officer to accelerate product delivery, enhance customer value and drive innovation in the payment technology sphere.
With more than 30 years of technology leadership experience, including roles at Microsoft and Clearent by Xplor, Sundt aims to leverage generative AI and other cutting-edge technologies to simplify complexities and deliver embedded payment solutions. Sundt's mission aligns with Stax's commitment to innovation and customer satisfaction, ushering in a new era of technological advancements and growth opportunities for the company and its partners, the company stated. 
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