Here we are on the brink of 2016, and like every month this year i have rounded up the top payments news stories. The main story that seems to have emerged this month is the continued growth of cashless payments. With both Apple Pay and Samsung Pay looking to launch in China next year, Android Pay targeting Australia and contactless statistics showing no signs of slowing this is undoubtedly a trend that will continue to feature for years to come. Banks continue to realign themselves and blockchain of course gathers momentum. There are some interesting and revealing reports and surveys that i may review and provide further analysis on in the coming weeks.
One of the best finance 2015 recaps i have read was by none other than the Finextra team with That was the year that was. The team provide an overview of the top stories by month, the most commented and most shared – well worth a read!
Check out the following top payments news stories for December 2015…
1. Payments News – SEPA
- I couldn’t find any official SEPA related news, so thought i would remind everyone of the upcoming February 2016 SEPA deadline – Be Ready!
2. Payments News – Cyber Security
- The Wall Street Journal reveals how the biggest cyber security threat to banks could be within – citing how 20% of JP Morgan employees clicked on a test fake phishing email
- Atom Bank unveil plans to use biometrics – facial and voice recognition – to increase security when using their mobile app
- In a speech at Harvard CFTC commissioner highlights cyber threats as the number one threat to 21st century financial markets
- Banks reach a financial crime “tipping point” according to LexisNexis Risk Solutions and the British Bankers Associations
3. Payments News – Mobile Payments
- UK Cards Association report reveals the changes in UK spending patterns over the last decade
- The European Interchange Fee Regulation (IFR) came into effect, capping interchange fees across Europe
- PayPal announce that One Touch (by BrainTree and PayPal) is being used by over 10 million people around the world
- EMVCo release stats showing how 1 in 3 of all (global) card transactions now use EMV chip technology
- Russian Banks launch “Mir” to challenge Visa and MasterCard
- Apple Pay and Samsung Pay both partner with China UnionPay to launch their mobile payments systems in China next year
- Android Pay will launch in Australia in early 2016
- China UnionPay launches HCE mobile payments service
- Walmart announces Walmart Pay
- UK Cards Association data over the last decade shows how consumer spending has undergone a revolution over the past decade
- RBR reveal the “spectacular growth in the number of cards and the volume of payments during 2014”
- Vodafone launch m-Pesa in Ghana
- Number26 – the smartphone only bank – launches in 6 European countries, a first step towards borderless banking in Europe!
4. Payments News: Digital / Crypto-currencies
- R3CEV grows to 42 banks, and from Jan 2016 will look to engage non-bank institutions
- Digital Asset Holdings recruit some finance heavyweights from SWIFT and SunGard
- Omidyar Network invests in eCurrency Mint (eCM) – a technology that enables central banks to issue digital fiat currency
- MicroSoft hooks up with Ripple to offer Azure blockchain as a service
5. Payments News: Banks
- JP Morgan appoints 2 techies to its European board
- Rabobank cuts 9000 jobs – almost a fifth of its workforce
- Pascal Boillat – currently head of operations technology at Fannie Mae – joins Deutsche Bank as Chief Information Officer (CIO)
- Barclays online and mobile systems crash
- Tandem a British challenger bank gets a banking licence – the second digital only bank to do so this year
6. Payments News: Fintech
- TransferWise in talks with UK banks to embed money transfer services into their smartphone apps
- Fintech gets added to Investopedia
7. Payments News: SWIFT
- SWIFT announce global payments innovation initiative
- SWIFT expands Innotribe’s remit to support innovation in markets such as Africa and Latin America, and to collaborate and develop solutions for the finance industry
8. Payments News: Reports
- EY release FinTech Adoption Index
- Ovum report how banks will increase spending on payments technology in 2016
- An online survey in the UK by ACI Worldwide and YouGov reveals a consumer loyalty to banks and the slow pace of “digital disruption” in the UK banking sector
- KPMG publish their Fintech 100 – the worlds leading FinTech innovators for 2015
- The UK Payment System Regulator (PSR) publishes a report into UK payments systems access and governance, and highlights room for improvements
- Magister Advisors share their 3 month survey results – Blockhain & Bitcoin in 2016: A Survey of Global Leaders
- Cybercrime tops a list of risks to banks according to the CSFI / PwC – Bank Banana Skins 2015 global annual survey
That’s it folks! Let me know below if I missed anything important….
I wish you a Happy and Healthy 2016!