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.
Middle East and Africa Global Network Cards — 2021
Visa, Mastercard, American Express and Diners Club credit, debit and prepaid cards issued in the Middle East and Africa (MEA) region generated $1.546 trillion in total volume in 2021. This was an increase of 23.3% from 2020. Total volume is the combination of purchases of goods and services with cash advances and cash withdrawals.
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.
Neofy in the Nilson Report
NEOFY is a cloud-based provider of a predominantly pay-as-you-go SaaS platform that enables creation of a regulatory-compliant and operationally ready neobank.
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.
Top 50 Card Issuers in the Middle East and Africa — 2021
Issuers from 49 countries are ranked on pages 8 and 9. These are the 50 largest issuers of credit, debit and prepaid general purpose and domestic-market-only cards in the Middle East and Africa (MEA) region. The top 50 combined issued 215.4 million consumer and commercial cards.
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.