In brief

14 June 2021

Telkom has launched Africa’s first Mastercard virtual card for use on WhatsApp, enabling Telkom Pay customers to make e-commerce payments.

This move is expected to enable millions of South Africans to access the digital economy and transact online.

Launched in 2020, the Telkom Pay digital payments wallet enables users to make and receive payments using WhatsApp on a mobile phone.

With the addition of the Mastercard virtual card to the wallet, users can now make payments to local and global online merchants that accept Mastercard, including Uber and Netflix.

Sibusiso Ngwenya, managing executive for financial services at Telkom, said: “We are proud to lead the way in launching the first virtual card through WhatsApp on the continent. This ensures greater financial inclusion through affordable products and services that cater to everyone and are easily accessible through a mobile device at any time.”

3 June 2021

American Express is teaming up with other online fraud-prevention companies to help stop card-not-present fraud and make online shopping safer.

Enhanced Authorization, American Express’s industry-leading fraud-identification solution, is now integrated via API into Accertify’s Fraud and Abuse Protection Platform, Microsoft’s Dynamics 365 Fraud Protection, and Riskified’s Fraud Management Platform. Additional integrations are planned over time.

“The best way to drive fraud out of the digital payments ecosystem is for merchants and card issuers to share enhanced transaction details with each other at the moment an online purchase is happening,” said Tina Eide, SVP, global fraud risk at American Express.

“Our partnerships with Accertify, Microsoft and Riskified expand the reach of our Enhanced Authorization solution to online merchants big and small, helping us to instantly identify and block fraudulent purchases.”

10 June 2021

Australian fintech platform Airwallex, in collaboration with payments giant Visa, has launched the Airwallex Borderless Card for businesses in Hong Kong.

The launch enables Airwallex’s Hong Kong clients to generate and issue multi-currency virtual payment cards instantly.

The card can be used to make payments to third parties including vendors and online subscriptions.

It can transact in over 140 currencies and pay merchants worldwide anywhere Visa is accepted.

It also has single-use or multi-use cards options with individual transaction limits across currency and merchant types.

Airwallex group CFO Kai Wu said: “Demand for virtual cards has been accelerating as businesses look for a modern solution to not only transact money, but to also control their finances, optimise spending and enhance their security and protection.”

Last month Airwallex launched its online card payment-acceptance solution in Hong Kong.

9 June 2021

US Captial Global Securities, an affiliate of US Capital Global, has launched a $10m equity offering for Danish high-security card provider CardLab.

The equity offering will enable CardLab to increase manufacturing and delivery of card security solutions.

CardLab uses patented card technology for ID, access, payment, blockchain, and cybersecurity solutions.

CardLab CEO Frank Sandeløv said: “We’re immensely pleased to be working with US Capital Global Securities on this $10m equity offering.

“We have conducted extensive research into high-security cards, identity theft problems, and solutions to online fraud and card security issues, and are proud to have developed some very sophisticated products and achieved significant technological advances as a result.”

CardLab has been nominated by the European Commission as one of Europe’s most high-tech firms.

It manufactures standard-size electronic secure card products with a focus on biometric smart cards.

8 June 2021

Beeline Kazakhstan, a Veon brand, has introduced a digital payment card in the country, bolstering its financial services portfolio.

The Beeline Kazakhstan digital payment card, which operates under the Simply brand, is integrated with the mobile financial services offering.

The offering can be connected with the customer’s phone number, an electronic wallet and a premium digital Visa Platinum card to facilitate transactions.

The customers can also add the card to digital wallets such as Apple Pay, Samsung Pay and Garmin Pay.

Veon Group CEO Kaan Terzioglu said: “Mobile financial services are a key strategy for the future growth of Veon and one that is highly suited to the markets we serve where financial inclusion remains low.

“We have successfully grown financial services and e-commerce businesses off the back of mobile operations in Pakistan, and we are now announcing a similar initiative by Beeline in Kazakhstan.”

11 June 2021

Bank of America has added a new solution, Pay to Card, to its suite of business-to-consumer offerings.

Pay to Card aims to meet the growing needs of corporate users to make payments digitally and quickly directly into an individual’s or small business’s bank account.

Bank of America said that Pay to Card can process payments to around 170 countries in more than 120 currencies.

It can be used to transfer payments to contractors and gig economy workers, issue refunds and rebates to customers, and aid payments for higher education and insurance.

Bank of America claims that the new card offers enhanced digitisation, speed, certainty and security while meeting global requirements.

David Kretz, head of global payments in global transaction services at Bank of America, said: “As the latest addition to our suite of digital B2C payment options, Pay to Card offers enhanced speed, flexibility and convenience.”

9 June 2021

Oakland, California-based card issuing platform Marqeta has priced its IPO above the marketed range to raise $1.2bn.

The firm sold 45.5 million shares for $27 each. Previously, the firm had set a range for the shares at $20-24 apiece.

The firm will have a market capitalisation of $14.3bn, excluding employee stock options. Its diluted value, comprising options, restricted stock units and warrants, is now at least $15bn.

Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan are the lead book-running managers for the offering, while Citigroup, Barclays, William Blair and KeyBanc Capital Markets are the book-running managers. Nomura, HSBC, R Seelaus & Co., and Siebert Williams Shank are the co-managers.

In a statement, the card-issuing platform said: “Marqeta’s Class A common stock is expected to begin trading on the Nasdaq Global Select Market under the ticker symbol ‘MQ’ on June 9, 2021.

8 June 2021

US-based firm KYN Capital Group (KYNC) has announced that its Koinfold crypto app suite will include a debit card.

The Koinfold debit card will be directly linked to the user’s Koinfold account to enable payments. The cards may carry additional functionalities to be announced at a later date.

The announcement comes days after KYN Capital Group unveiled the Koinfold crypto app suite, which includes tools to enable users to purchase, sell or store crypto securely.

The suite will also include Koinfoldpay, a contactless crypto payment gateway for businesses.

KYNC CEO Rick Wilson said: “We see the Koinfold debit card as one more step in this evolution, allowing consumers the ability to use their crypto accounts for payment with merchants that are not yet equipped for touchless crypto payment systems such as Koinfoldpay.”

7 June 2021

Citi has renewed its consumer co-branded credit card portfolio agreement with AT&T with a multi-year extension in the US.

The partners will continue to offer new credit card products. They aim to boost customer engagement and loyalty, and work on further offerings.

Users of the AT&T Access Card have access to double ThankYou Points per $1 spent on retail and travel transactions. Meanwhile, double ThankYou Points are earned on products and services bought directly from AT&T.

Cardholders can redeem ThankYou Points for gift cards, travel rewards and electronics.

Scott Frank, intellectual property VP at AT&T, said: “We look forward to the value this renewal will bring for our customers across the US in rewarding them for their everyday purchases and further fostering long-term loyalty.”

3 June 2021

Payments platform Adyen has expanded its acquiring services in the Middle East, with the inclusion of the UAE.

With the launch of its acquiring solution in the UAE, Adyen offers domestic and international businesses with an improved payments solution, thereby enabling higher authorisation rates and enhanced shopper flows with less friction.

Foodics, Fabergé and HMSHost International are among the first merchants to benefit from the acquiring solution, claimed Adyen.

In the UAE, Adyen offers the same range of products and features to firms that it provides in other regions, including a fully integrated anti-fraud solution, and revenue optimisation toolkit.

Encompassing the full payment flow through a single platform for online, in-store and in-app transactions, Adyen’s acquiring services help merchants to provide frictionless payment experiences for shoppers. The company will be provided support by Network International.