Why Bitcoin and PayPal Aren't Real Threats to the Big Banks

From The Street –

“As purchases with dollar bills give way more and more to digital transactions, are the country's banks at risk of experiencing the same fate as the vinyl-record stores of the 1970s and video-rental chains of the 1990s?

That was the question U.S. Comptroller of the Currency Thomas Curry posed Wednesday -- and answered firmly in the negative. The head of an office that oversees more than 1,600 banks with $10.9 trillion in assets, Currry argued that established U.S. banks will keep their competitive edge against online platforms such as PayPal and digital currencies like Bitcoin. Brick-and-mortar shops like Bank of America (BAC - Get Report), JP Morgan Chase (JPM - Get Report) and Wells Fargo (WFC - Get Report) can rest easy, he said.”

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UK launch of digital bank Fidor hamstrung by payments providers

From The Telegraph -

“Innovative German lender Fidor Bank's UK launch has been delayed by difficulties gaining access to the country's payments system infrastructure.

A German bank is set to bring brand new banking technology to Britain, once it is able to secure access to UK payment architecture.

The lender, Fidor Bank, had planned to launch in the UK by the end of March, but has been held up with the country’s difficult payments infrastructure. The big four - Barclays, HSBC, Lloyds and RBS - act as sponsor banks with direct access to payments systems. None has accepted Fidor as a customer.

Frank Schwab, CEO of Fidor’s technology subsidiary TecS, said that the problems the bank had encountered were unexpected. “We did not know that it was such a challenge, we only found out once we started the project,” he said.”

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Microsoft establishes a new company called called Microsoft Payments

From TWCN Tech News -
“Microsoft Corporation, according to applications filed before regulatory bodies, may be working on a potential online payment system, exclusive to its platform. The suggestion that the Redmond-giant may have a new service for mobile-payment up its sleeve was accidently revealed following the issue of license by the State of Idaho, Department of Finance. The name of the company, to which the license was issued, is called Microsoft Payments Inc. The license permits the company to operate as a money transfer platform.”

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Bank Execs Say Apple Must Work With Them to Solve Payment Security Issues

From Ad Age –

“Payment security is a banking industry-wide problem and Apple needs to work with banks to solve it, said a panel at American Banker's Retail Banking conference in Austin, Texas.

"Hey, Apple you're part of the industry now," said Neff Hudson, assistant VP-emerging channels at USAA, which partners with Apple Pay. "Welcome to the party."

Executives from Mastercard, USAA and BetterBuyDesign, a payments system consulting firm, gathered to discuss Apple Pay's impact on bank security and branding.

Security was a hot topic in light of last week's fraud attempts on Apple Pay. The fradulent transactions used stolen credit card information from retailer data breaches. Apple's platform was previously hailed as one of the most secure mobile payment options because of its use of tokenization -- an encryption system.”

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China's international payments system is almost ready

From Business Insider -

“A long-awaited China International Payment System (CIPS) that would facilitate international usage of the yuan is ready and may be launched as early as September or October, three sources with direct knowledge of the matter told Reuters.

The system, which would be a worldwide payments superhighway for the yuan, will replace a patchwork of networks and allow hassle-free renminbi transactions, greatly boosting the internationalization of the Chinese currency.”

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