Digital Currency Update
FTX, a crypto exchange, has partnered with Visa to offer FTX-branded debit cards to customers in more than 40 countries. Cards are currently available in the US and will be offered in Europe later this year.
Region: Latin America
Latin America’s 45 Largest Acquirers — 2021
Merchant acquirers in the Latin America and the Caribbean (LA&C) region that owned the 45 largest portfolios of payment card processing contracts in 2021 are ranked on page 6. Collectively, they processed 32.69 billion Visa and Mastercard card transactions, an increase of 31.1% from 2020.
Bango Buys NTT Docomo Carrier Billing Business
Payments made for purchases of games, apps, subscriptions (cable TV, telecom, mobile) and streaming services reached $230 billion in 2021—app store spending was $170 billion and streaming entertainment was $60 billion.
Digital Currency Update
Mastercard partnered with Hi, a crypto exchange and app provider, to produce personalized debit cards featuring the image of an NFT avatar the cardholder already owns. The Hi card will support NFTs from approved collections, which include CryptoPunks, Moonbirds, Goblins, Bored Apes and Azukis.
Digital Currency Update
NearPay, a crypto protocol provider, launched virtual-card and digital-wallet services for residents of the EEA and the UK. The NearPay Wallet is available for iOS and Android operating systems and supports 38 cryptocurrencies.
Digital Currency Update
Binance will launch a Mastercard prepaid card in Argentina. The card will be issued by Credencial Payments and will be the first crypto card from Binance issued in Latin America.
Visa and Mastercard Halt Payments for Adult Content
Visa and Mastercard halted payments to the Pornhub platform in 2020 after The New York Times published an opinion piece that cited the Luxembourg-based company’s tolerance of exploited minors on its website.
Global Network Card Results in 2021
Purchase transactions worldwide for goods and services initiated by credit, debit and prepaid cards carrying brands of the global networks—Visa, UnionPay, Mastercard, American Express, JCB and Diners Club/Discover—amounted to a combined 581.22 billion in 2021, an increase of 24.5% over 2020.
Digital Currency Update
Gemini, a cryptocurrency exchange and custodian, has expanded its partnership with Plaid in the US and the UK. The partnership lets Gemini users share account details with other services, including apps for financial planning, net worth calculations and tax advice.
FICO and Open-Finance.ai
The FICO Blaze Advisor decision rules management system has been used in a variety of markets including financial services and telcos for more than 20 years to automate the onboarding of new customers, support lending, facilitate insurance claims and other uses.
