Tag Archives: VISA

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Visa introduces a solution designed to unify management and secure customer payment data

Token Management Service: Smarter Tokens for a Connected Digital World (Photo: Business Wire)

Provides a 360-Degree View of Customer Payments Across Channels and Payment Types

SAN FRANCISCO, 2018-Feb-28 — /EPR Retail News/ — Visa (NYSE: V) today introduced Token Management Service, a solution designed to unify management and secure customer payment data. Token Management Service enables an integrated view of payment preferences and behaviors across a merchant’s commerce platforms, processing environments, geographies, payment types and card brands.

Seventy percent of the world, or more than 5 billion people, will be connected via mobile device by 20201, creating the need for merchants to provide consumers with seamless digital payments that work securely, anywhere and on any device. Laying a foundation for this transition, Visa has developed Token Management Service, part of Visa’s CyberSource payment management platform.

Different token services deployed across multiple digital commerce environments create channel silos, preventing merchants from fully understanding payment behavior across their various customer touchpoints. Token Management Service helps enable merchants to unify payment token implementation in order to provide simple, innovative and seamless purchasing experiences. For example:

  • Customers can buy goods online, then pick them up in store, or make a purchase online and return items in-store.
  • Merchants can augment their customer engagement strategy with tailored loyalty programs and promotions to suit customer preferences and behavior, ultimately providing impactful customer experiences

“Our clients are seeking to create new integrated commerce experiences that unify their digital and physical operations to gain a comprehensive 360-degree view of their customer interactions,” said Andre Machicao, senior vice president, digital merchant products, Visa. “Today’s launch of Token Management Service brings merchants a vital capability to better service their customers by enabling them to embrace and create new, frictionless and secure payment experiences and maintain their competitive edge.”

Merchants can deploy Token Management Service with limited changes to their current IT infrastructure. When using the service, payment information is stored in secure Visa data centers. Merchants can benefit directly by reducing costs associated with compliance and minimizing security threats associated with keeping sensitive data on their own networks.

“Merchants operate in an omnichannel world where customers have the power of choice in shopping, namely – how, where, and when to buy. Consumers also value convenience and immediacy in their interaction with merchants and expect a streamlined payment experience regardless of their buying method or platform,” said Raymond Pucci, associate director, Mercator Advisory Group. “Providing a unified token management service as part of a layered approach to payment risk mitigation ensures a fast and secure checkout experience that strengthens the customer relationship.”

The latest addition to Visa’s innovative digital solutions for merchants, Token Management Service is a complementary solution to Visa Token Service, a payment network tokenization service developed by Visa in 2014. Visa Token Service has paved the way for innovative digital payments types, ranging from technologies such as Visa Checkout, to mobile wallets and payment-enabled IoT devices, including wearables, connected cars and appliances and mobile commerce in retail environments. Token Management Service will enable merchants to realize the value of payment-network tokens by simplifying integration into Visa Token Service and other payment network tokenization services.

For more information about Token Management Service, please visit: http://www.cybersource.com/tokenization

About Visa Inc.Visa Inc. (NYSE: V) is the world’s leader in digital payments. Our mission is to connect the world through the most innovative, reliable and secure payment network – enabling individuals, businesses and economies to thrive. Our advanced global processing network, VisaNet, provides secure and reliable payments around the world, and is capable of handling more than 65,000 transaction messages a second. The company’s relentless focus on innovation is a catalyst for the rapid growth of connected commerce on any device, and a driving force behind the dream of a cashless future for everyone, everywhere. As the world moves from analog to digital, Visa is applying our brand, products, people, network and scale to reshape the future of commerce. For more information, visit usa.visa.com/aboutvisa, visacorporate.tumblr.com and @VisaNews.

1 Source: Cisco Visual Networking Index Global Mobile Data Traffic Forecast Update, 2015-2020

Source: Visa Inc.

Visa Inc.
Aida Hadzibegovic, 415-805-4242
ahadzibe@visa.com

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Visa announces new research and education programs to strengthen the talent pipeline in the credit union industry

New field research focused on recruiting practices and expanded education opportunities for emerging credit union leaders strengthens industry talent pipeline

SAN FRANCISCO, 2018-Feb-28 — /EPR Retail News/ — Visa (NYSE: V) today announced new research and education programs as part of the company’s ongoing efforts to strengthen the talent pipeline in the credit union industry. Visa, together with the Filene Research Institute, will conduct two unique studies exploring talent gaps in the credit union industry throughout 2018. Visa and Filene will also introduce expanded education opportunities and resources designed to inspire young leaders to pursue careers in credit unions and foster their growth.

“Credit unions are vital to the financial health of our communities and Visa is committed to ensuring the long-term success of these organizations,” said Doug Leighton, head of community accounts, Visa. “Our goal is to introduce opportunities for emerging talent to grow in their career, while bringing fresh ideas and strategies to credit union leadership in order to more effectively serve their members.”

Advancing recruitment research through the War for Talent Center of Excellence

Through Filene Research Institute’s War for Talent Center of Excellence Visa and Filene will convene leading academics and credit union experts to study the industry’s talent gap. Filene research fellow, Dr. Sekou Bermiss, assistant professor of management, University of Texas, Austin, will conduct two unique studies in 2018:

  • Factors of Talent Attraction at Two Credit Unions: A Field Study: Despite a large percentage of individuals in the labor force expressing interest in working for a company that makes a social impact, recruiting within credit unions remains a key challenge. This natural field experiment within a set of credit unions will test the effectiveness of current recruiting practices.
  • Credit Union Board Composition: Desires and Practices: This research aims to help credit union leadership identify key traits they seek in candidates and define values and soft skills that impact these traits in order to build a diverse board equipped to attract talent with well-rounded backgrounds, ideas and expertise.

“There remains a gap between credit union leadership and the members they serve. We have an opportunity to leverage people analytics and research to develop the right strategies for attracting, developing and promoting top performers within credit unions, from the front line to the boardroom,” said Dr. Sekou Bermiss, assistant professor of management, University of Texas, Austin and Filene research fellow. “I look forward to continuing research with the War for Talent Center of Excellence and Visa to share insights that help credit union leaders build and grow a qualified talent pipeline.”

These two new studies build on the Center’s first publication authored by Dr. Bermiss in 2017, “Laws of Attraction: Credit Union Recruitment in a Competitive Labor Market.” Credit union and human resources leaders can put these insights into practice with the “Talent Attraction Checklist,” an actionable resource outlining important factors like employee fit, job characteristics and recruiter behavior to consider throughout the recruitment process.

Furthering education and talent development through The Cooperative Trust

Visa and The Cooperative Trust, an initiative focused on educating and cultivating young leaders in the credit union industry, will offer expanded online and offline resources in 2018, including a new mentorship program. These efforts include the “Crashers” program, offering the brightest young leaders the opportunity to participate in conversations and events focused on shaping the future of credit unions. Visa and Filene Researchwith support from the Credit Union National Association will host 78 Crashers, a record number, at the upcoming Governmental Affairs Conference, the industry’s largest advocacy conference.

“As we continue to grow The Cooperative Trust and Crash opportunities, we’re always challenging ourselves to elevate and advance the program to provide the most impact for young professionals and the credit union system,” said Lauren Culp, manager, The Cooperative Trust. “Visa has played a valuable role in helping ensure young people have a voice and are included in the conversation as we look to the future of our industry.”

Program highlights to date include:

  • The Cooperative Trust received the 2017 Herb Wegner Award for Outstanding Program, the highest national honors for the credit union movement that celebrates programs that put belief into action.
  • Five Crashers selected in the top 15 of the Next Top Credit Union Executive Competition.
  • Over 130 Crashers participating in credit union events across the U.S., including hands on experience at Visa’s Innovation Center in San Francisco.
  • Expanded online and offline resources including a new mentorship program, a refreshed website and online community, and additional Crash events.

About Visa Inc.

Visa Inc. (NYSE: V) is the world’s leader in digital payments. Our mission is to connect the world through the most innovative, reliable and secure payment network – enabling individuals, businesses and economies to thrive. Our advanced global processing network, VisaNet, provides secure and reliable payments around the world, and is capable of handling more than 65,000 transaction messages a second. The company’s relentless focus on innovation is a catalyst for the rapid growth of connected commerce on any device, and a driving force behind the dream of a cashless future for everyone, everywhere. As the world moves from analog to digital, Visa is applying our brand, products, people, network and scale to reshape the future of commerce. For more information, visit usa.visa.com/aboutvisa, visacorporate.tumblr.com and @VisaNews.

Source: Visa Inc.

Visa Inc.
Elizabeth Pietrzak, 415-203-7235
epietrza@visa.com

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Visa announces the availability of its suite of sensory branding for merchants, terminal manufacturers and developers

Verifone, Equinox Payments, Ingenico Group, and Poynt Sign-on to Pilot New Visa Sensory Branding: Sound, animation, and haptic (vibration) that signifies completed transactions

NEW YORK, 2018-Jan-16 — /EPR Retail News/ — NATIONAL RETAIL FEDERATION “BIG SHOW” – Visa (NYSE: V) today (Jan. 14, 2018) announced that its suite of sensory branding is now available as a pilot program for merchants, terminal manufacturers and developers. In a world increasingly filled with voice-commands, networked appliances and payment-enabled wearables, Visa’s unique sound, animation and haptic (vibration) cues signify completed, secure transactions in digital and physical retail environments when consumers pay using Visa.

“Our research has shown that Visa’s sensory cues signal speed, trust and convenience among consumers,” said Jack Forestell, head of global merchant solutions, Visa Inc. “As new payment experiences proliferate, we are helping our partners assure their customers that their transaction has been quickly and securely completed, no matter how they prefer to pay.”

Covering approximately 60 percent of the U.S. merchant point-of-sale terminal market1, manufacturers Equinox Payments, Ingenico Group, Poynt, and Verifone are working with Visa to pilot sensory branding with merchant partners in the coming year. According to a recent consumer study conducted in eight countries, 81 percent 2 of participants said they would have a more positive perception of merchants who used either the sound or animation cues. Additionally, less than a second in length2, the sound of Visa was found to signal speed and convenience.

“We are pleased that Visa will be first to take advantage of new Verifone capabilities that enable distinctive experiences for cardholders,” said Vin D’Agostino, executive vice president at Verifone. “We believe merchants and consumers benefit from a more personalized and relevant experience at check out and offer a powerful and open platform to allow innovators like Visa to create those experiences at the last inch of commerce.”

“Equinox is thrilled to be part of Visa’s innovative sensory branding initiative,” said Rob Hayhow, vice president, Equinox Payments. “Our Luxe family of devices has been designed to take full advantage of this technology by putting the customer experience at the forefront of every transaction.”

Visa’s sensory branding is scheduled to be available as a software development kit (SDK) for iOS, Android, and Web solutions on the Visa Developer Platform on January 31st. Developers can visit https://developer.visa.com/ to learn more about integrating the features into their solutions.

As a presenting sponsor of NRF 2018’s Innovation Lab, Visa’s sensory branding will be showcased at NRF 2018: Retail’s Big Show in New York, where attendees can test the technology through an immersive, interactive demonstration. To explore how industry leaders like Visa are forging new frontiers in digital transactions, Visa CEO Al Kelly will discuss the future of commerce and payments at the conference alongside Karen Katz, president and CEO, The Neiman Marcus Group, Inc. and Jon Fortt, co-anchor of CNBC’s “Squawk Alley” on Tuesday, January 16 from 10:30-11:15 am ET. Additionally, Matt Smith, vice president of Visa’s Platform Strategy will be hosting a panel of retailers directly after the keynote on the Innovation Lab Stage with Chris Plunkett (CMT Group) at 11:30 a.m. ET.

About Visa Inc.

Visa Inc. (NYSE: V) is the world’s leader in digital payments. Our mission is to connect the world through the most innovative, reliable and secure payment network – enabling individuals, businesses and economies to thrive. Our advanced global processing network, VisaNet, provides secure and reliable payments around the world, and is capable of handling more than 65,000 transaction messages a second. The company’s relentless focus on innovation is a catalyst for the rapid growth of connected commerce on any device, and a driving force behind the dream of a cashless future for everyone, everywhere. As the world moves from analog to digital, Visa is applying our brand, products, people, network and scale to reshape the future of commerce. For more information, visit usa.visa.com/aboutvisa, visacorporate.tumblr.com and @VisaNews.

1 Nilson Report #1114, July 2017
2 IPG Lab 2017

Media Contacts:
Visa Inc.
Kryssa Guntrum
415-805-4488
kguntrum@visa.com

Source: Visa Inc.

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Visa and Dynamics presented the Dynamics Wallet Card™ at the 2018 Consumer Electronics Show

Internet of Things (IoT) device holds multiple payment cards and includes a digital display allowing for greater security, instant issuance and on-card alerts or coupons

LAS VEGAS, 2018-Jan-11 — /EPR Retail News/ — Visa and Dynamics today (Jan. 8, 2018) unveiled the Dynamics Wallet Card™, a connected payment card, at the 2018 Consumer Electronics Show (CES). The Visa-branded version of the Wallet Card is the same size and shape as a normal Visa credit or debit card, yet it incorporates multiple features and technologies not previously found in a single payment card. Features of the Wallet Card range from the capacity to access multiple cards – whether EMV-, contactless- or magnetic stripe-based – to a programmable on-card display that enables account information, such as alerts or coupons, to be sent to the cardholder via an embedded antenna.

“Innovation in the payments category is not limited to wearables, cars, security or mobile technology – there is still much that can be done to update the card-based experience, which continues to be the primary form factor used globally to complete digital payments transactions,” said Mark Nelsen, senior vice president of risk and authentication products, Visa. “Having collaborated with Dynamics since they launched their first product several years ago, we’re excited about the many unique benefits that the Visa Wallet Card can offer to both financial institutions and cardholders, alike.”

Wallet Card includes a cell phone chip and cell phone antenna so data can be transferred between Wallet Card and a consumer’s bank anywhere in the world and at any time of the day.

The device offers a number of cardholder benefits and cutting-edge technologies, including:

  • Multiple Cards in One: Cardholders can access their debit, credit, pre-paid, multicurrency, one-time use, or loyalty cards on a single card with the tap of a button. Account information is shown on the on-card display with the ability to toggle between cards or accounts.
  • Instant Issuance: As the first instant, digital card platform, financial institutions can distribute Visa Wallet Card anywhere and at any time – such as in their retail branches or at events, and consumers can activate it right away.
  • Greater Security: A bank can quickly delete a compromised card account number and replace it with a new account number, providing convenience and peace of mind for the cardholder.
  • Alerts and Messages: An on-card, 65,000-pixel display shows both account information and allows messages to be sent to the Visa Wallet Card at any time. For example, after every purchase, a message may be sent to notify the consumer of the purchase and their remaining balance if they used a pre-paid or debit card. Cardholders can also receive coupons directly on the display or be notified of a suspicious purchase and click on “Not Me” to report suspected fraud and request a new card number.
  • Self-Charging Battery: An organic chip ensures the payment card charges itself through normal operation and doesn’t require any work for the cardholder.

“Visa supported the initial launches of Dynamics first- and second-generation powered cards which brought new functionality to payment cards,” said Jeffrey Mullen, CEO of Dynamics Inc. “Today, we are pleased to again have Visa by our side as an integral partner and thought leader as we launch Wallet Card, our most innovative payment card to-date.”

Availability to Financial Institutions & Consumers

For financial institutions interested in piloting the Wallet Card, it will be available in early 2018.

For consumers wishing to be notified when a particular card will be made available to the public, they can register today at www.getwalletcard.com.

CES 2018

Dynamics Wallet Card will be on display in booth 30359 at CES 2018, which runs January 9-12 in Las Vegas. The product will also be included in the Innovations Showcase at Tech West, Venetian, Ballroom E.

About Visa

Visa Inc. (NYSE: V) is the world’s leader in digital payments. Our mission is to connect the world through the most innovative, reliable and secure payment network – enabling individuals, businesses and economies to thrive. Our advanced global processing network, VisaNet, provides secure and reliable payments around the world, and is capable of handling more than 65,000 transaction messages a second. The company’s relentless focus on innovation is a catalyst for the rapid growth of connected commerce on any device, and a driving force behind the dream of a cashless future for everyone, everywhere. As the world moves from analog to digital, Visa is applying our brand, products, people, network and scale to reshape the future of commerce. For more information, visit usa.visa.com/aboutvisa, visacorporate.tumblr.com and @VisaNews.

About Dynamics Inc.

Dynamics has three business units – an intelligent card, value-added processing, and phone payment technology business unit. The Company’s intelligent card division has introduced market defining card products such as the world’s first multiple account card (Canada), the world’s first password protected card (Asia), and the world’s first multiple co-brand card (USA). The Company’s value-added processing division provides real-time loyalty and purchase notification to over 10 million consumers and includes customers such as Tim Hortons and the Upper Deck Company. The Company also produces pay-by-phone technology that is used in millions of cell phones. LG Electronics leverages Dynamics technology in LG Pay. Dynamics has raised over $110 million dollars in funding from investors including MasterCard, CIBC, Adams Capital Management, and Bain Capital Ventures. Dynamics operates multiple manufacturing facilities, physical card personalization, and remote data trusted service manager (TSM) facilities, with its Global Headquarters in Pittsburgh, Pa., APAC headquarters in Singapore, LATAM headquarters in Sao Paulo, Brazil, and EMEA headquarters in New York. More information on the company, its technology and applications can be found at www.dynamicsinc.com.

Media Inquiries Only:
Visa Inc.
Kryssa Guntrum
415-805-4488
kguntrum@visa.com

Source: Visa Inc.

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Visa releases travel and spend data timed with the Final Draw for the 2018 FIFA World Cup Russia™

Visa, the Official Payment Service Partner of FIFA, releases travel and spend data timed with the Final Draw for the 2018 FIFA World Cup Russia™

SAN FRANCISCO, 2017-Nov-29 — /EPR Retail News/ — In celebration of the Final Draw for the 2018 FIFA World Cup Russia™, Visa (NYSE: V), the Official Payment Service Partner of FIFA, released travel and spending data for the 2018 FIFA World Cup™. Throughout official FIFA venues, Visa will enable a cash-free fan experience by implementing point-of-sale terminals that accept a Visa credit or debit card and a range of digital payments, such as those made via phone or watch.

These enhancements ensure official FIFA venues are equipped with the latest in payment innovation and are ready for the increase in expected international visitors to Russia. Based on spending trends and insights from Visa, it is projected that Russia will host an additional 300,000 to 500,000 international visitors1 during the months of June and July 2018, on top of a baseline average of 4.3 million total international visitors2 to Russia during that same time period over the past four years.

Based on historical data1 from the previous four FIFA World Cup™ tournaments, Visa projects foreign visitors to Russia will represent a 6 to 10 percent increase in foreign visitors to the country in June and July 2018. The largest share of non-native travelers to Russia are forecast to come from:

  • Europe (69 percent)
  • Asia Pacific (12 percent)
  • Americas (8 percent)

Based on historical data3 from the 2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil™, Visa anticipates Russia can expect to see an increase in per traveler spending. On average, visitors attending the 2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil™ spent 31 percent more3 per card than regular tourists in Brazil. Visa projects this difference was a result of FIFA World Cup™ fans spending:

  • Over 25 percent more at restaurants
  • Over 10 percent more on transportation
  • Close to 10 percent more on lodging

“As the Official Payment Service Partner of FIFA, Visa is excited for fans all over the world to join us in Russia,” said Ekaterina Petelina, country manager, Visa Russia. “From unveiling the latest payment innovations to upgrading payment terminals to allow for contactless cards and digital payments, such as those made via phone or watch, throughout official venues, Visa will continue to elevate the fan experience. Visa provides simple and secure payment options for those in attendance, so they can get back to their seats quickly and focus on the match.”

Global ticket sales for the 2018 FIFA World Cup Russia™ continue to perform well, as FIFA recently reported4 that:

  • Close to 800,000 tickets have been sold so far to the FIFA World Cup global fan base.
  • Nearly 50 percent of the ticketing demand is coming from the host country, Russia, with Argentina, Australia, Brazil, China, Colombia, Germany, India, Mexico and the United States making up the largest number of international requests.

To ensure fans have a seamless and secure payment experience when attending the 2018 FIFA World Cup Russia™, Visa developed the following recommended travel tips that fans can take advantage of.

Know Before You Go to Russia

  • Notify your issuing bank or financial institution of anticipated travel plans, including use of Visa debit, credit or prepaid cards abroad to avoid any issues while processing transactions. Issuing banks can also provide information about travel-related benefits for Visa account holders, including opt-in mobile services, such as Mobile Location Confirmation through your bank’s mobile app or Visa’s Travel Authorization Tag.
  • Register for SMS notifications with your specific bank, or the bank’s transaction notification service, to track purchases made on your Visa accounts as you travel.
  • Set up automatic bill pay for any credit cards to give you some peace-of-mind that your account will be current while traveling abroad.
  • Make two copies of important travel documents, namely your passport, in case of emergency. Leave one copy with a friend or relative and carry the other separate from your original documents. You can also take a photo with your cellphone of important documents.

Travel Tips for Fans in Russia

  • When paying by card, pay in “local currency” for a competitive exchange rate.
  • Use a credit or debit card for purchases. Visa offers security, convenience and ease when paying abroad. It is safer than carrying cash.
  • Whenever possible, pay through a chip-activated terminal when using your credit or debit card for enhanced security.
  • Look for the Visa or PLUS logo at any point-of-sale terminal to ensure international payment cards are accepted.

As the Official Payment Service Partner of the 2018 FIFA World Cup Russia™, Visa will be celebrating the spirit of football in Russia and is looking forward to showcasing the future of digital payments with fans from all over the globe. For additional information on Visa’s sponsorship of the 2018 FIFA World Cup Russia™, visit www.visa.com.

Methodology

Visa International Travel (VISIT) platform is a proprietary model that combines Visa’s cardholder data with publicly-available cross-border arrival statistics. The database provides a comprehensive view into high-frequency cross-border travel flows, currently encompassing the top 82 origin and destination countries, which collectively account for more than 80 percent of global travel. VISIT combines unique counts of Visa cardholders that register a face-to-face transaction at a merchant outside their home country in a given calendar month with other transaction data such as average spend per cardholder, card usage patterns at lodging merchants and others. Visa uses this data to econometrically model official arrival statistics compiled by various government sources and to generate estimates that fill in the large gaps existing in the cross-border travel data.

About Visa Inc.

Visa Inc. (NYSE: V) is the world’s leader in digital payments. Our mission is to connect the world through the most innovative, reliable and secure payment network – enabling individuals, businesses and economies to thrive. Our advanced global processing network, VisaNet, provides secure and reliable payments around the world, and is capable of handling more than 65,000 transaction messages a second. The company’s relentless focus on innovation is a catalyst for the rapid growth of connected commerce on any device, and a driving force behind the dream of a cashless future for everyone, everywhere. As the world moves from analog to digital, Visa is applying our brand, products, people, network and scale to reshape the future of commerce. For more information, visit usa.visa.com/aboutvisa, visacorporate.tumblr.com and @VisaNews.

1 Estimate based on the Visa International Travel (VISIT) platform, 2002-2014.

2 Visa International Travel (VISIT) platform, four-year average, 2014-2017.

3 VisaNet 2014.

4 See FIFA.com/tickets for more information about ticket sales for the 2018 FIFA World Cup™.

Contact:
Sheerin Salimi
shesalim@visa.com

Source: Visa Inc.

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Visa adds Nigerian Women’s Bobsled Team to Team Visa

Visa adds Nigerian Women’s Bobsled Team to Team Visa

 

Inspired by their determination, Visa helps pave the way to PyeongChang for this group of Olympic hopefuls

SAN FRANCISCO, 2017-Nov-17 — /EPR Retail News/ — Visa (NYSE:V) today (Nov. 15, 2017) announced the addition of three athletes who make up the Nigerian Women’s Bobsled Team to Team Visa, currently training to become the first ever African representatives, men or women, to qualify for the Olympic Winter Games in the sport of Bobsled. Together, Bobsled pilot Seun Adigun, and brakemen Ngozi Onwumere and Akuoma Omeoga, combine their elite track backgrounds to chase their bobsled dreams.

Without access to proper training equipment or valuable ice time to perfect their skills, the members of the Nigerian Women’s Bobsled Team started their journey on the snow-less grounds of Houston, Texas, in a wooden sled they nicknamed ‘The Maeflower.’ Once the team set their sights on the Olympic Winter Games PyeongChang 2018, they established a crowdfunding website hoping to raise the much-needed funds to get to PyeongChang. Upon discovering the page, Visa was inspired by their story and determination to carve out a place in history and pledged to help solidify the team’s trip to the Olympic Winter Games.

“When we first heard their story we recognized the collective spirit of these athletes as a perfect fit for Team Visa,” said Chris Curtin, chief brand and innovation marketing officer at Visa. “By joining Team Visa, we hope to provide this group of determined athletes with a global stage to tell their story and inspire athletes all over the world to follow their dreams and never give up.”

The athleticism and determination of each member of the Nigerian Women’s Bobsled Team is palpable, as they push to rewrite history in their sport:

  • Seun Adigun (Nigeria, Bobsled Driver): Adigun represented Nigeria in the 100m hurdles at the London 2012 Olympic Games. Wanting to get back on the Olympic stage, she began training for bobsled in 2014.
  • Ngozi Onwumere (Nigeria, Bobsled Breakmen): Onwumere, a former competitive sprinter, clinched a Silver and Gold medal at the 2015 African Games in Republic of the Congo in the 200m and 4x100m relay, respectively. Onwumere started training after being recruited by Adigun in 2016.
  • Akuoma Omeoga (Nigeria, Bobsled Breakmen): Omeoga is a graduate of the University of Minnesota where she was a sprinter for the university’s track and field team, competing in the 100m and 200m races. The Olympic Winter Games PyeongChang 2018 will be the first time she is representing Nigeria.

“Already the support and encouragement we have felt as part of Team Visa has been a dream come true,” said Seun Adigun, driver of the Nigerian Women’s Bobsled Team. “We are proud to be part of a team that shares our mission and has connected us with the resources we needed to reach our goal, and hopefully empower others to do the same.”

Since the program began in 2000, Team Visa has supported over 400 Olympic and Paralympic Athletes and hopefuls by providing them with the tools, resources and support they need to reach their highest potential, regardless of origin or background. Team Visa features a diverse group of Olympic and Paralympic athletes who embody our core values – acceptance, partnership and innovation – and was cultivated with the global reach of the Olympic and Paralympic Games in mind.

The women of the Nigerian Women’s Bobsled Team joins Team Visa’s diverse roster of athletes, which includes: Mikaela Shiffrin (USA), Chloe Kim(USA), Gus Kenworthy (USA), Hilary Knight (USA), Oksana Masters (USA), Mark McMorris (Canada), Lee Sang-Hwa (South Korea), Kamil Stoch(Poland) and others.

For additional information on Team Visa, follow along at @VisaNews on Twitter and visit www.visa.com.

About Visa Inc.

Visa Inc. (NYSE:V) is the world’s leader in digital payments. Our mission is to connect the world through the most innovative, reliable and secure payment network – enabling individuals, businesses and economies to thrive. Our advanced global processing network, VisaNet, provides secure and reliable payments around the world, and is capable of handling more than 65,000 transaction messages a second. The company’s relentless focus on innovation is a catalyst for the rapid growth of connected commerce on any device, and a driving force behind the dream of a cashless future for everyone, everywhere. As the world moves from analog to digital, Visa is applying our brand, products, people, network and scale to reshape the future of commerce. For more information, visit usa.visa.com/aboutvisa, visacorporate.tumblr.com and @VisaNews.

Contact:
Bitsy Rich
415-813-7252
erich@visa.com

Sarah Hamblen
415-728-7268
shamblen@visa.com

Source: Visa Inc.

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Visa launches Visa Global Transit Solutions; creating a more convenient experience for mass transit commuters worldwide

Visa launches Visa Global Transit Solutions; creating a more convenient experience for mass transit commuters worldwide

 

  • Visa introduces innovative worldwide program to accelerate seamless, friction-free commuting with contactless payments
  • The new Visa Ready for Transit program incorporates new standards that will simplify the certification of payment solutions for operators and transit solution providers
  • A new team assembled from transportation, technology and payments industries to provide expertise and support
  • Visa’s Innovation Center in London to focus on the future of transportation, investigating cutting-edge technologies and tech integrators

LONDON & SAN FRANCISCO, 2017-Nov-14 — /EPR Retail News/ — Visa (NYSE:V) today(Nov. 13, 2017) launched Visa Global Transit Solutions, a new program designed to accelerate the use of debit, credit and pre-paid accounts at the fare gate or on a bus reader, speeding up and creating a more convenient experience for mass transit commuters worldwide.

“Visa is the best way to pay and be paid everywhere and on any device. We want to make the transportation experience faster, easier and more secure whether someone is traveling by car, flying on holiday or taking public transportation to work,” said Michael Lemberger, head of products at Visa in Europe. “Visa played an important role in partnering with Transport for London (TfL). We are applying the expertise which has led to more than one billion Visa contactless journeys on TfL to help mass transit operators around the world move away from cash and tickets to contactless payments on buses and trains.”

“We work hard to make public transport in London easy for everyone and developing contactless ticketing has been a huge part of this,” said Shashi Verma, Chief Technology Officer at TfL. “More than 40 percent of pay-as-you-go journeys are now made using contactless cards or mobile devices and we have already seen cards from more than 100 countries around the world using our system. To get to this point, a lot of things needed to change about how the payment industry worked, including the creation of new payment rules. Without our close partnership, we would not have seen the huge benefits to customers that contactless ticketing has already delivered in London.”

The new Visa transit program helps mass transit operators and technology providers of any size add contactless as a fare option at the gate. The global program consists of:

  • Consulting: The Visa Global Transit Solutions team is comprised of a central group in London and dedicated regional specialists around the world who will support contactless payments implementations, providing guidance and hands-on assistance. Together, the team has more than 50 years of experience working directly with, and for, mass transit operators and related industries.
  • Frameworks: Visa has created the Mass Transit Transaction model, a back-office framework to manage contactless payments regardless of transit operators’ size or fare structure. The Visa model enables operators to offer a range of flexible fares, including fixed fares, distance- and time-based fares, and multi-modal fares, as well as features like fare capping, concessions, and delay refunds.
  • Tools and Standards: An important part of Visa Global Transit Solutions is the expansion of the Visa Ready program to include payment technologies available to mass transit operators. Visa Ready for Transit enables technology companies to become Visa Ready certified, giving mass transit operators the peace of mind that the technology solution they choose meets Visa’s high standards for security. As the initial Visa Ready for Transit program participants, Worldline and Vix Technology will help to offer new, open loop contactless solutions to transit operators globally.
  • Future of Transportation: Visa is looking at the complete end-to-end consumer experience, making the Innovation Center in London the natural epicentre for future of transportation commerce options, including automobiles, air travel, and mass transit. The Visa team will engage with transit operators, technology enablers, fintech companies and others to examine all aspects of the consumer journey and engage in the co-creation of new travel experiences.

Visa’s recent Cashless Cities report notes that digital payments have the potential to significantly decrease costs associated with transit and toll systems maintained by municipal governments. The study found that transit agencies spend an average of 14.5 cents of every physical dollar collected, compared to only 4.2 cents for every digital dollar.

Visa recently launched a series of events for transit operators and technology companies to learn more about the various initiatives being developed by the Transit program. The first event was held in London with future events to be held in Dubai, New York, and Singapore.

Over the coming months, the Visa Global Transit Solutions program will further expand to include new offerings ranging from fraud management and back-office capabilities to loyalty and marketing programs aimed at optimising the customer experience.

The Visa Global Transit Solutions team has implemented a dozen transit solutions to-date in Europe and currently has new projects underway in Asia, North America and Europe – all focused on customer propositions that reduce the hassle of using public transport. Acceptance of contactless payments across the globe has increased significantly in recent years – particularly in Europe, where today over 40 percent of Visa’s face-to-face transactions are contactless (source: Visa Europe Processed Data, June 2017).

About Visa Inc.

Visa Inc. (NYSE:V) is the world’s leader in digital payments. Our mission is to connect the world through the most innovative, reliable and secure payment network – enabling individuals, businesses and economies to thrive. Our advanced global processing network, VisaNet, provides secure and reliable payments around the world, and is capable of handling more than 65,000 transaction messages a second. The company’s relentless focus on innovation is a catalyst for the rapid growth of connected commerce on any device, and a driving force behind the dream of a cashless future for everyone, everywhere. As the world moves from analog to digital, Visa is applying our brand, products, people, network and scale to reshape the future of commerce. For more information, visit our website (www.visaeurope.com), the Visa Vision blog (vision.visaeurope.com), and @VisaEuropeNews.

Contact:
Europe:
Rica Squires
+44 (0)20 7795 5336
europeanmedia@visa.com
Twitter: @VisaEuropeNews

North America:
Kryssa Guntrum
1-415-805-4488
kguntrum@visa.com

Source: Visa Inc.

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Visa creates wearable payment devices in the spirit of the Olympic Winter Games

Visa creates wearable payment devices in the spirit of the Olympic Winter Games

 

Fans and Team Visa Athletes will enjoy the convenience and style of Visa payment-enabled gloves, stickers and commemorative Olympic pins

SAN FRANCISCO, 2017-Nov-10 — /EPR Retail News/ — Visa (NYSE: V), the exclusive payment technology partner at the Olympic and Paralympic Games, today (Nov. 8, 2017) introduced three commercially available wearable payment devices. In the spirit of the Olympic Winter Games, Visa created NFC-enabled payment gloves, commemorative stickers and Olympic pins that allow fans and athletes to complete seamless and secure payments with a simple tap at any contactless-enabled terminal.

“We are looking forward to transforming the payment experience for everyone who attends the upcoming Olympic Winter Games in PyeongChang,” said Iain Jamieson, Korea country manager at Visa. “At Visa, we have been working tirelessly to ensure all of the Olympic venues are equipped with the very latest payment capabilities to provide the best experience possible for all those on-site.”

Visa teamed up with Lotte Card, the financial arm of South Korean-based retail giant, Lotte Department Store, to produce and make these new prepaid payment wearables available for purchase in Korea beginning November 9. About the products:

  • Commemorative Olympic Pin: Inspired by the long-standing tradition of collecting commemorative pins at the Olympic Games, Visa is bringing to market four unique lapel pins featuring custom PyeongChang 2018 designs to offer a payment-enabled collectable for fans and athletes to utilize on-site. Cost per pin is KRW5,000 plus desired embedded prepaid amounts valued at KRW30,000 or KRW50,000.
  • Payment-Enabled Gloves: The average temperature in PyeongChang will be – 4.8°C1, so gloves will be a must-have! This payment glove will offer fans a way to pay safely and securely without having to get cold hands. The gloves contain a dual interface chip housed with a contactless antenna capable of completing purchases throughout official Olympic Venues and compatible readers globally. The gloves will come with embedded prepaid amounts valued at KRW30,000 or KRW50,000.
  • Sticker: With a thin and flexible adhesive design and an embedded dual interface NFC-chip and antenna, these micro-tags can be attached to almost anything to make seamless payments in a moment’s notice. The wearable sticker is available in denominations of KRW30,000, KRW50,000, KRW100,000 and KRW200,000. The collection includes 8 distinct designs including Soohorang – the official PyeongChang 2018 mascot – the Korean flag, and much more.

“It is important to me, as a Winter Olympian, to work with a brand like Visa that not only supports a diverse group of athletes, but also enables an enhanced fan experience for those at the Games,” said Mikaela Shiffrin, USA Olympic gold medalist and Team Visa athlete. “Olympic pins are always the most coveted collectibles, these Visa pins really up the ante.”

Starting November 9, the stickers and pins can be purchased from Lotte Card’s customer centers in Korea and the Lotte Card website. During the Games, all three wearables will also be available for purchase at the Olympic Superstores in conveniently located Visa vending machines.

“Growing up in South Korea, I am proud that my home country is hosting the Games, and is using this opportunity to introduce Visa payment innovations to the rest of the world,” said Park, Seung-Hi, South Korean Olympic Speed Skating and Team Visa athlete. “These payment gloves provide a hassle-free way to pay, even when it’s cold!”

In addition to the wearables and as the exclusive payment partner of the Olympic Games, Visa is facilitating and managing the entire payment system infrastructure and network throughout all venues within the Games. This includes more than 1,000 contactless point-of-sale terminals capable of accepting mobile and wearable payments.

As the payments industry increasingly shifts from plastic to digital, new technology advances from Visa and its partners are bringing consumers a simple and secure purchasing experience. To learn more about Visa and its Olympic sponsorship, visit https://usa.visa.com/about-visa/sponsorships-promotions/olympics-partnership.html.

About Visa Inc.

Visa Inc. (NYSE: V) is the world’s leader in digital payments. Our mission is to connect the world through the most innovative, reliable and secure payment network – enabling individuals, businesses and economies to thrive. Our advanced global processing network, VisaNet, provides secure and reliable payments around the world, and is capable of handling more than 65,000 transaction messages a second. The company’s relentless focus on innovation is a catalyst for the rapid growth of connected commerce on any device, and a driving force behind the dream of a cashless future for everyone, everywhere. As the world moves from analog to digital, Visa is applying our brand, products, people, network and scale to reshape the future of commerce. For more information, visit usa.visa.com/aboutvisa, visacorporate.tumblr.com and @VisaNews.

1 Olympic Winter Games PyeongChang 2018 Organizing Committee official website: https://www.pyeongchang2018.com/en/pyeongchang-weather-conditions

Contact:
Bitsy Rich
415-813-7252
erich@visa.com

Sarah Hamblen
415-728-7268
shamblen@visa.com

Source: Visa Inc.

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Visa announces the European launch of Visa Direct

  • Visa launches Visa Direct in Europe – enabling real-time1 payments using Visa’s global reliable and secure payments network
  • Visa Direct powers business initiated payments, such as payouts of insurance claims, as well as person-to-person payments
  • Visa announces partnership with Worldpay, an early adopter of Visa Direct – rolling out the benefits to merchants from early 2018

LONDON, 2017-Nov-04 — /EPR Retail News/ — Visa has announced the European launch of Visa Direct – a real-time payments platform that allows companies to leverage Visa’s global reach and scale to transform domestic and cross-border payments for businesses and consumers. Visa is working with payment service providers, financial institution clients and strategic partners to roll out services using Visa Direct.

Visa Direct enables person-to-person (P2P), business-to-consumer (B2C), and business-to-business (B2B) payments. With Visa Direct, funds can be transferred into the recipient’s Visa account quickly, conveniently, and securely – providing instant access to funds2 and the ability to make purchases at 44 million retail locations worldwide.

Visa has partnered with Worldpay, a global leader in payments processing technology and solutions for merchants, to accelerate the availability of Visa Direct to merchants in Europe and subsequently across all of its markets globally. Once recipient banks make required changes to their systems, 3 Visa Direct will enable Worldpay’s merchants to send real-time payments to consumers – improving customer satisfaction.

“For decades, Visa has led the way in transforming the way we pay in stores and online. Now, we have an opportunity to transform how consumers and business pay each other in a fast, convenient and secure way,” said Mike Lemberger, Senior Vice President of Product Solutions, Visa in Europe. “Visa Direct is a proven platform that enables technology companies, businesses and financial institutions to meet the demand for real-time payments, backed by the ubiquity, cost-efficiency and speed of Visa’s global network.”

Dave Glaser, Chief Product Officer, Global eCom at Worldpay said: “In recent years, the payments landscape has changed dramatically with clients and consumers alike expecting to be able to make a payment under their own terms – whether that is making a real-time payment or using a specific method. We are proud to be working with Visa on this unrivalled platform as an early adopter in Europe and other global markets and believe that Visa Direct is an important step in meeting those needs – providing both acquirers and merchants with the tools they need.”

Visa Direct is expected to transform payments in Europe by enabling a range of real-time payment use cases backed by the security and scale of Visa’s global payment network, including:

  • Business-to-consumer: enabling businesses to send almost any kind of payment directly to a Visa account – such as gaming winnings, insurance payouts, and daily merchant settlements.
  • Business-to-business: enabling businesses to pay freelancers, contractors, and other small businesses – in real time.
  • Person-to-person: enabling consumers to pay each other quickly, conveniently, and securely, often through their connected devices – such as when splitting bills or giving gifts.

In the US, Visa Direct is already enabling payments for partners such as PayPal, Braintree, Square Cash, and Stripe.

Visa Direct is one of the many Application Program Interface (API)-based network capabilities available on the Visa Developer Platform – an open platform intended to drive innovation in payments and commerce. The platform is designed to help financial institutions, merchants, and technology companies meet the demands of consumers and merchants who increasingly rely on connected devices to shop, pay, and get paid.

About Visa Direct

The Visa Direct platform is available in more than 200 markets around the world and can be used to reach more than one billion consumer card accounts globally. Available through a comprehensive Visa Direct API library, financial institutions and technology partners can quickly build real-time payment solutions through a feature-rich suite of web services on the Visa Developer Platform.

Visa in Europe has announced a mandate that requires card issuers to enable real-time payments by October 2018. Real-time payments allow funds to be sent by issuers to cardholders no later than 30 minutes from a transaction being approved.

More information about the Visa Developer Platform can be found at https://developer.visa.com/. More information about Visa Direct can be found at www.visa.com/visadirect.

About Visa Inc.

Visa Inc. (NYSE: V) is the world’s leader in digital payments. Our mission is to connect the world through the most innovative, reliable and secure payment network – enabling individuals, businesses and economies to thrive. Our advanced global processing network, VisaNet, provides secure and reliable payments around the world, and is capable of handling more than 65,000 transaction messages a second. The company’s relentless focus on innovation is a catalyst for the rapid growth of connected commerce on any device, and a driving force behind the dream of a cashless future for everyone, everywhere. As the world moves from analogue to digital, Visa is applying our brand, products, people, network and scale to reshape the future of commerce. For more information, visit (www.visaeurope.com), the Visa Vision blog (vision.visaeurope.com), and @VisaInEurope

About Worldpay

Worldpay is a leading payments company with global reach. We provide an extensive range of technology-led payment products and services to around 400,000 customers, enabling their businesses to grow and prosper. We manage the increasing complexity of the payments landscape for our customers, allowing them to accept the widest range of payment types around the world. Using our network and technology, we are able to process payments from geographies covering 99% of global GDP, across 146 countries and 126 currencies. We help our customers to accept more than 300 different payment types.

For more information, visit http://www.worldpay.com/global

1 Actual fund availability varies by financial institution.

2 Actual fund availability varies by financial institution.

3 Visa in Europe has announced a mandate that requires card issuers to enable real-time payments by October 2018.

Contact:
Leela Shanson
europeanmedia@visa.com
+44 (0)20 7795 5336

Source: Visa Inc.

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Visa and Billtrust to help streamline the reconciliation of B2B payments and increase automation of virtual card payments

SAN FRANCISCO and HAMILTON, N.J., 2017-Oct-19 — /EPR Retail News/ — Visa (NYSE: V) and Billtrust today (Oct. 17, 2017) announced a strategic partnership to help streamline the reconciliation of B2B payments and increase automation of virtual card payments for financial institutions and their corporate customers. This effort is part of a multi-pronged strategy Visa and Billtrust are pursuing to support growth in the B2B segment. Visa has also made a strategic investment in Billtrust to help accelerate Billtrust’s growth strategy.

The opportunity for corporate virtual credit cards that provide a unique 16-digit virtual account number for each payment continues to grow, providing value and efficiency over paper-based payment options such as checks. However, the process for accepting and processing virtual card payments has increased manual data entry and reconciliation challenges for accounts receivable departments. Visa and Billtrust are partnering to integrate Visa’s Straight Through Processing capabilities with Billtrust’s Virtual Card Capture solution to simplify receipt and reconciliation of B2B payments and bring automation to accounts receivable function.

“One of the key pain points for companies is the time and resources it takes to process payments,” said Taira Hall, vice president, US partnerships & new initiatives, business solutions at Visa. “Collaboration with leading partners like Billtrust helps our financial institution clients streamline the B2B payments process for their commercial customers, better support supplier needs, and simplify the process suppliers have to go through in order to accept a payment.”

Visa’s Straight Through Processing solution enables a participating issuer’s buyer to initiate a Visa commercial credit transaction directly from their accounting solution. With Billtrust’s Virtual Card Capture, payments sent to Billtrust suppliers are routed to Billtrust for processing and the funds are deposited into a supplier’s bank account on the next business day. Further, the remittance is consolidated across all payment sources and matched to corresponding open invoices.

“The integration of Visa’s Straight Through Processing and our Virtual Card Capture enables suppliers to more expediently manage a traditionally manual, cumbersome payment process,” said Flint Lane, Billtrust CEO. “With the increasing popularity of virtual cards in the B2B market, we’re solving what is quickly becoming a very critical pain point for A/R teams – one that impacts their cash flow, customer satisfaction and operational efficiency.”

“The ability to consolidate payments from all payment sources and reconcile those payments to the remittance information is the embodiment of the frictionless payments concept,” said Erika Baumann, senior wholesale banking analyst, Aite Group. “The partnership between Visa and Billtrust represents a strategic opportunity for thought leaders in the industry to serve their mutual clients by providing a path to frictionless integrated payments.”

At Money20/20 in Las Vegas, Visa and Billtrust will take the stage to share more details about the partnership and how they are working together to simplify accounts receivable processes for buyers and suppliers. Stop by the Murano Ballroom on the third floor of the Venetian on Tuesday, October 24 at 3:10 p.m. to learn more.

About Visa Inc.
Visa Inc. (NYSE: V) is the world’s leader in digital payments. Our mission is to connect the world through the most innovative, reliable and secure payment network – enabling individuals, businesses and economies to thrive. Our advanced global processing network, VisaNet, provides secure and reliable payments around the world, and is capable of handling more than 65,000 transaction messages a second. The company’s relentless focus on innovation is a catalyst for the rapid growth of connected commerce on any device, and a driving force behind the dream of a cashless future for everyone, everywhere. As the world moves from analog to digital, Visa is applying our brand, products, people, network and scale to reshape the future of commerce. For more information, visit usa.visa.com/aboutvisa, visacorporate.tumblr.com and @VisaNews.

About Billtrust
Billtrust accelerates cash flow by automating invoice delivery, invoice payment and cash application. Companies can improve operational efficiency throughout the invoice-to-cash process with electronic invoicing and payments in a flexible, cloud-based solution. Finance executives and A/R specialists love and recommend Quantum, Billtrust’s payment cycle management solution, for the remarkable cost savings, ease-of-use, and improved customer satisfaction rates.

SOURCE: Billtrust

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Visa study: relying more on electronic payments could yield net benefit of U.S. $470 billion per year across major cities around the world

SAN FRANCISCO, 2017-Oct-13 — /EPR Retail News/ — Visa (NYSE: V) announced today (Oct. 11, 2017) the results of an independent study conducted by Roubini ThoughtLab and commissioned by Visa examining the economic impact of increasing the use of digital payments in major cities around the world. The study estimates that relying more on electronic payments, such as cards and mobile payments, could yield a net benefit of up to U.S. $470 billion per year across the 100 cities studied – roughly the equivalent to 3% of the average GDP for these cities.

“Cashless Cities: Realizing the Benefits of Digital Payments”, is a unique study that quantifies the potential net benefits experienced by cities which move to an “achievable level of cashlessness”—defined as the entire population of a city moving to digital payment usage equal to the top 10% of users in that city today. The study does not look at eliminating cash. Rather, it seeks to quantify the potential benefits and costs of significantly increasing the use of digital payments.

By reducing reliance on cash, the study estimates the immediate and long-term benefits for three main groups—consumers, businesses and governments. According to the study, these benefits could add up to combined direct net benefits of approximately U.S. $470 billion across the 100 cities that were analyzed:

  • Consumers across the 100 cities could achieve nearly $28 billion per year in estimated direct net benefits. This impact would be derived from factors including up to 3.2 billion hours in time savings conducting banking, retail and transit transactions, in addition to a reduction in cash-related crime.
  • Businesses across the 100 cities could achieve more than $312 billion per year in estimated direct benefits. This impact would derived from factors including up to 3.1 billion hours in time savings processing incoming and outgoing payments and increased sales revenues stemming from extended online and in-store customer bases. The study also found that accepting cash and checks costs businesses 7.1 cents of every dollar received compared to 5 cents of every dollar collected from digital sources.
  • Governments across the 100 cities could achieve nearly $130 billion per year in estimated direct benefits. This impact would be derived from factors including increased tax revenues, increased economic growth, cost savings from administrative efficiencies and lower criminal justice costs due to reduced cash-related crime.

“This study demonstrates the substantial upside for consumers, businesses and governments as cities move toward greater adoption of digital payments,” said Ellen Richey, Visa’s vice chairman and chief risk officer. “Societies that substitute digital payments for cash see benefits from greater economic growth, less crime, more jobs, higher wages, and increased worker productivity.”

As cities increase use of digital payments, the positive impacts can extend beyond financial benefits to consumers, businesses, and government. The shift to digital payments also may have a catalytic effect on the city’s overall economic performance, including GDP, employment, wage, and productivity growth.

“The use of digital technologies—from smart phones and wearables to artificial intelligence and driverless cars—is rapidly transforming how city dwellers shop, travel, and live,” said Lou Celi, Head of Roubini ThoughtLab. “Without a firm foundation in electronic payments, cities will not be able to fully capture their digital future, according to our analysis.”

“Cashless Cities: Realizing the Benefits of Digital Payments” offers 61 recommendations for policymakers to help their cities become more efficient through greater adoption of digital payments. Recommendations include undertaking financial literacy programs to help move the unbanked into the banking system, implementing incentives to stimulate innovation focused on scaling new payment technologies, implementing secure open-loop payment systems across all transportation networks and more.

Visa and Roubini Thoughtlab created an online data visualization tool as a companion to “Cashless Cities: Realizing the Benefits of Digital Payments.”Using the data visualization tool, individuals can increase or decrease the level of digital usage in each of the 100 cities included in the study to better explore the benefits of a world, less dependent on cash. Visit the online data visualization tool and download the report at: www.visa.com/cashlesscities.

METHODOLOGY

Roubini Thoughtlab, a leading economics and evidence-based research firm, surveyed 3,000 consumers and 900 businesses in 2016 across six cities (Tokyo, Chicago, Stockholm, Sao Paolo, Bangkok and Lagos) that represent different levels of digital payments maturity. These surveys examined the use, acceptance, and cost-benefit impact of physical and digital money. Researchers then extrapolated these survey results based on specific demographic and economic data to another 94 cities around the world to determine the net impact of moving toward a cashless economy on consumers and businesses in each location. Through other sources, the research was also able to identify expected impacts on government. Researchers used World Bank, Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, and other well-respected secondary data sources to augment the survey results and build the overall findings. An econometric model used by various central banks and other institutions – the National Institute Global Econometric Model (NiGEM) – was used to estimate the “catalytic” impacts (economic growth, productivity, employment and wages) that a move toward digital payments would have on each of the 100 cities analyzed. Visa commissioned the study. Roubini Thoughtlab independently conducted the surveys, managed the research and developed the analysis.

About Visa

Visa Inc. (NYSE: V) is the world’s leader in digital payments. Our mission is to connect the world through the most innovative, reliable and secure payment network – enabling individuals, businesses and economies to thrive. Our advanced global processing network, VisaNet, provides secure and reliable payments around the world, and is capable of handling more than 65,000 transaction messages a second. The company’s relentless focus on innovation is a catalyst for the rapid growth of connected commerce on any device, and a driving force behind the dream of a cashless future for everyone, everywhere. As the world moves from analog to digital, Visa is applying our brand, products, people, network and scale to reshape the future of commerce. For more information, visit usa.visa.com/aboutvisa, visacorporate.tumblr.com and @VisaNews.

Contact:
Hugh Norton
globalmedia@visa.com

Source: Visa Inc.

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Visa announces its global Team Visa roster for the Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games PyeongChang 2018

Visa announces its global Team Visa roster for the Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games PyeongChang 2018

 

Roster features athletes from 17 countries, including Mikaela Shiffrin, Chloe Kim, Gus Kenworthy, Oksana Masters, Mark McMorris, Kamil Stoch and Lee, Sang Hwa

SAN FRANCISCO, 2017-Sep-21 — /EPR Retail News/ — Visa (NYSE:V) today (Sep. 20, 2017) announced its global Team Visa roster for the Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games PyeongChang 2018, comprised of over 40 Olympians and Paralympians from 17 countries, including Mikaela Shiffrin (USA), Chloe Kim (USA), Mark McMorris (Canada), Gus Kenworthy (USA), Oksana Masters (USA), Lee, Sang Hwa (South Korea), Kamil Stoch (Poland), and Hilary Knight (USA). This team of Olympic and Paralympic hopefuls represent a diverse group of individuals representing a range of sports, from snowboarding and speed skating to ski jumping and figure skating.

A global Olympic partner for more than 30 years and Paralympic partner since 2003, Visa founded its Team Visa program in 2000, with the aim of providing athletes with the tools, resources and support they need to achieve their lifelong dreams, both on and off the field of competition, regardless of their origin or background. Today, Team Visa is unified by athletes who embody Visa’s values of acceptance, partnership and inclusion, with athletic talent matched equally by their character.

“We are excited to welcome all of our Olympic and Paralympic athletes to Team Visa and we think this roster is the perfect embodiment of what the Visa brand stands for, as these athletes push boundaries every day in everything they do,” said Chris Curtin, chief marketing innovation and brand officer at Visa Inc. “Team Visa athletes remain at the heart of Visa and we are excited to cheer them on in their pursuit of Olympic and Paralympic Gold in PyeongChang.”

The following athletes officially joined Team Visa ahead of PyeongChang 2018:

  • Mikaela Shiffrin (USA, Alpine Skiing): After making history at the Olympic Winter Games Sochi 2014 as the youngest American to win Olympic Gold in Slalom, Mikaela is looking to solidify her place in Olympic Winter Games history by winning more Olympic medals than any other female alpine skier. During PyeongChang 2018, she is determined to compete in four individual events and the team competition.
  • Chloe Kim (USA, Snowboard – Halfpipe): As a 13 year-old, Chloe qualified for the Olympic Winter Games Sochi 2014 and would have been a favorite to win Gold, but by rule was too young to compete. At the Olympic Winter Games PyeongChang 2018, as a first generation Korean American, Chloe is looking to win her first Olympic Gold medal in her parents’ home country. The Southern Californian teen has quickly become the sport’s biggest star aiming to make her Olympic Winter Games mark in PyeongChang.
  • Mark McMorris (Canada, Snowboard – Slopestyle & Big Air): After a near-fatal crash in back-country British Columbia in March 2017, Mark’s determination to reach the top of the podium at PyeongChang 2018 is what is fueling his recovery to push himself beyond the limits. Given that he won bronze at Sochi 2014 just two weeks after suffering a fractured rib, Mark is determined to defy the odds once again at the Olympic Winter Games, and bring home Gold in the inaugural big air event – arguably his best event.
  • Gus Kenworthy (USA, Freestyle Skiing – Slopestyle & Halfpipe): As the first openly gay action sports athlete, Gus is a trailblazer on and off the slopes. In his Olympic Winter Games debut in Sochi 2014, Gus earned a Silver medal in the inaugural slopestyle event, and has his sights set on reaching the podium in both slopestyle & halfpipe at PyeongChang 2018. Off the slopes, Gus is a major advocate for the LGBTQ community, hoping to inspire others to be confident and open about their sexuality.
  • Lee, Sang Hwa (South Korea, Speed Skating): As a two-time Gold medalist, Lee, Sang Hwa is always pushing past her own limits on and off the ice. She was inspired to skate by her brother, but her parents could only afford to support one child in pursuit of the Olympic Winter Games dream, driving her to work harder to push past her personal boundaries. In 2018, Sang Hwa hopes to do what only one other Olympian has done – win a Gold medal in three consecutive Olympic Winter Games. With PyeongChang 2018 being held on her own turf, she is inspired more than ever to reach the top of the podium.
  • Kamil Stoch (Poland, Ski Jumping): Born and raised in Zakopane, a Polish ski resort, Kamil Stoch learned to ski when he was three years old, and started jumping just one year later. By the time he was sixteen, Stoch made his World Cup debut and two years later he competed in his first Olympic Winter Games. At Sochi 2014, Stoch won two individual Golds, making him the third ski jumper in history to win both individual events.
  • Oksana Masters (USA, Para cross-country skiing & Para biathlon): Oksana was born with complications that later were linked to nuclear radiation exposure and she was given up for adoption at a Ukrainian orphanage. Needless to say, the now three-time Paralympian has been defying all odds since birth. Oksana has three Paralympic medals under her belt (2 Bronze and 1 Silver), and is hungry for her first Gold at PyeongChang 2018. She’s also hoping to make history. After missing the medal podium by 3 seconds in 2014, Oksana is aiming to be the first US athlete at the Olympic or Paralympic Winter Games to medal in Biathlon.
  • Hilary Knight (USA, Ice Hockey): Hilary was a member of the United States Women’s Ice Hockey Team that won Silver medals at the Olympic Winter Games Sochi 2014 and Vancouver 2010, and is hoping to bring home her first Gold at PyeongChang 2018. Off the ice, Hilary is a leading advocate in the fight for equal compensation for female ice hockey players and also made history in 2014 when she became the first female skater (non-goalie) to practice with an NHL team.

Additional Team Visa athletes from around the globe include:

  • North America: Sarah Hendrickson (USA, Ski Jumping), Maggie Voisin (USA, Freestyle Skiing – Slopestyle), David Wise (USA, Freestyle Skiing – Halfpipe), Jamie Anderson (USA, Snowboard – Slopestyle & Big Air), Travis Gerrits (Canada, Freestyle Skiing – Aerials), Charles Hamelin (Canada, Short Track Speed Skating), Mac Marcoux (Canada, Para alpine skiing), Scott Moir (Canada, Figure Skating), Spencer O’Brien (Canada, Snowboard – Slopestyle & Big Air), Tessa Virtue (Canada, Figure Skating)
    • Not Competing: Meryl Davis (USA, Figure Skating), Charlie White (USA, Figure Skating)
    • Retired: Angela Ruggiero (USA, Ice Hockey)
  • Asia: Park, Seung Hi (South Korea, Speed Skating), Beibei Chu (China, Para cross-country skiing), Han Cong (China, Figure Skating), Sui Wenjing(China, Figure Skating), Han Tianyu (China, Short Track Speed Skating), Zhang Yiwei (China, Snowboard – Halfpipe), Sara Takanashi (Japan, Ski Jumping), Noriaki Kasai (Japan, Ski Jumping), Park, Caroline (South Korea, Ice Hockey), Lee, Sang Ho (South Korea, Snowboard – Parallel Slalom), Lim, Hyo Jun (South Korea, Short Track Speed Skating), Jung, Seung Hwan (South Korea, Para ice hockey) , Michael Christian Martinez (Philippines, Figure Skating)
  • Europe: Ester Ledecka (Czech Republic, Alpine Skiing & Snowboard – Parallel Slalom), Roope Tonteri (Finland, Snowboard – Slopestyle & Big Air), Elise Christie (Great Britain, Short Track Speed Skating), Billy Morgan (Great Britain, Snowboard – Slopestyle & Big Air), Peter Fill (Italy, Alpine Skiing), Marcus Kleveland (Norway, Snowboard – Slopestyle & Big Air), Maxim Trankov (Russia, Figure Skating), Tatiana Volosozhar (Russia, Figure Skating), Stina Nilsson (Sweden, Cross-Country Skiing), Patrick Burgener (Switzerland, Snowboard – Halfpipe)
  • Africa: Brolin Mawejje (Uganda, Snowboard – Slopestyle & Big Air)
  • South America: Dominique Ohaco (Chile, Freestyle Skiing – Slopestyle)

Tickets are currently available for purchase directly through the PyeongChang 2018 ticketing website for residents of Korea (including registered Non-Koreans residing in Korea) or through PyeongChang 2018’s Authorized Ticket Resellers for international residents. Starting from November, tickets will also be available on sale at outlets and main ticket centers in Korea. For more information on PyeongChang 2018 tickets, please visit: https://tickets.pyeongchang2018.com/

For additional information on Team Visa, follow along at @VisaNews on Twitter and visit www.visa.com.

About Visa Inc.

Visa Inc. (NYSE: V) is the world’s leader in digital payments. Our mission is to connect the world through the most innovative, reliable and secure payment network – enabling individuals, businesses and economies to thrive. Our advanced global processing network, VisaNet, provides secure and reliable payments around the world, and is capable of handling more than 65,000 transaction messages a second. The company’s relentless focus on innovation is a catalyst for the rapid growth of connected commerce on any device, and a driving force behind the dream of a cashless future for everyone, everywhere. As the world moves from analog to digital, Visa is applying our brand, products, people, network and scale to reshape the future of commerce. For more information, visit usa.visa.com/aboutvisa, visacorporate.tumblr.com and @VisaNews.

Contact:
Bitsy Rich
415-813-7252
erich@visa.com

Sarah Hamblen
415-728-7268
shamblen@visa.com

Source: Visa Inc.

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Visa named to the 2017 Dow Jones Sustainability North America Index

SAN FRANCISCO, 2017-Sep-19 — /EPR Retail News/ — Visa (NYSE:V) today (Sep. 18, 2017) announced the company has been named to the 2017 Dow Jones Sustainability North America Index (DJSI), one of the most prestigious indices for corporate responsibility and sustainability performance. The Index recognizes companies that are leading in their industry in global economic, environmental and social contributions. In addition to Visa’s recognition on the DJSI, Visa also was named to the FTSE4Good Index and Ethisphere’s World’s Most Ethical Companies list earlier this year.

“At Visa, we are inspired by our mission to connect the world through digital payments and help individuals, businesses and economies to thrive,” said Douglas Sabo, vice president and head of Corporate Responsibility and Philanthropy at Visa Inc. “As we continue to fulfill our mission, we are proud of the leadership we demonstrate in operating responsibly, ethically and sustainably.”

According to the results of the annual review process, Visa outperformed its industry averages in 16 of 21 topic areas. Visa’s highest scoring areas include corporate governance, corporate citizenship and philanthropy, IT security, talent attraction and retention and codes of business conduct.

Visa recently published its annual Corporate Responsibility Report, titled “Everyone, Everywhere,” which provides a comprehensive view of Visa’s sustainability commitments and progress. Areas of focus include Visa’s work to transform commerce, expand financial access, invest in its people, operate responsibly and strengthen communities.

About Visa Inc.

Visa Inc. (NYSE: V) is the world’s leader in digital payments. Our mission is to connect the world through the most innovative, reliable and secure payment network – enabling individuals, businesses and economies to thrive. Our advanced global processing network, VisaNet, provides secure and reliable payments around the world, and is capable of handling more than 65,000 transaction messages a second. The company’s relentless focus on innovation is a catalyst for the rapid growth of connected commerce on any device, and a driving force behind the dream of a cashless future for everyone, everywhere. As the world moves from analog to digital, Visa is applying our brand, products, people, network and scale to reshape the future of commerce. For more information, visit usa.visa.com/aboutvisa, visacorporate.tumblr.com and @VisaNews.

About S&P Dow Jones Indices

S&P Dow Jones Indices is the largest global resource for essential index-based concepts, data and research, and home to iconic financial market indicators, such as the S&P 500® and the Dow Jones Industrial Average®. More assets are invested in products based on our indices than products based on indices from any other provider in the world. Since Charles Dow invented the first index in 1884, S&P DJI has become home to over 1,000,000 indices across the spectrum of asset classes that have helped define the way investors measure and trade the markets. S&P Dow Jones Indices is a division of S&P Global (NYSE: SPGI), which provides essential intelligence for individuals, companies, and governments to make decisions with confidence. For more information, visit www.spdji.com.

Media Relations:
Marni Goldberg
202-313-1253
globalmedia@visa.com

Cone Communications
Brittany Straughn
617-939-8426
bstraughn@conecomm.com

Source: Visa Inc.

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Visa Inc. to present at the Deutsche Bank 2017 Technology Conference in Las Vegas on September 13

SAN FRANCISCO, 2017-Sep-08 — /EPR Retail News/ — Visa Inc. (NYSE:V) today announced its participation in the following investor conference in the month of September.

On Wednesday, September 13, Sam Shrauger, SVP Digital Products, will present at the Deutsche Bank 2017 Technology Conference in Las Vegas. The discussion will begin at 11:40 a.m. Pacific Time and last for approximately 35 minutes.

Listen-only audio webcast and replay will be accessible for 30 days on the Investor Relations website at http://investor.visa.com.

About Visa Inc.
Visa Inc. (NYSE: V) is the world’s leader in digital payments. Our mission is to connect the world through the most innovative, reliable and secure payment network – enabling individuals, businesses and economies to thrive. Our advanced global processing network, VisaNet, provides secure and reliable payments around the world, and is capable of handling more than 65,000 transaction messages a second. The company’s relentless focus on innovation is a catalyst for the rapid growth of connected commerce on any device, and a driving force behind the dream of a cashless future for everyone, everywhere. As the world moves from analog to digital, Visa is applying our brand, products, people, network and scale to reshape the future of commerce. For more information, visit usa.visa.com/aboutvisa, visacorporate.tumblr.com and @VisaNews.

Source: Visa Inc.

Visa Inc.
Investor Relations:
Victoria Hyde-Dunn, 650-432-7644
ir@visa.com
or
Media Relations:
Nathaniel Sillin, 415-805-4892
globalmedia@visa.com

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Visa names Charlotte Hogg as new executive vice president and chief executive officer, European operations

LONDON, UK, 2017-Sep-08 — /EPR Retail News/ — Visa (NYSE:V) announced today it has appointed Charlotte Hogg as the new executive vice president and chief executive officer for its European operations, effective October 1, 2017. Ms. Hogg will report to Visa’s chief executive officer, Al Kelly, and Visa Europe Limited (VEL) board chairman, Gary Hoffman. Ms. Hogg will join the VEL board of directors and will also be a member of Visa’s global executive committee.

Ms. Hogg brings more than 25 years of experience to Visa, in roles that span financial services, bank operations and management consulting. Ms. Hogg most recently served as chief operating officer for the Bank of England, from 2013 to 2017. Prior to that role, she led retail distribution for Santander in the UK and previously worked at Experian as the managing director of UK and Irish operations.

Earlier in her career, Ms. Hogg was a managing director for strategy and planning at Morgan Stanley, and a management consultant at McKinsey & Company, based in the U.S. Ms. Hogg graduated from the University of Oxford with a Bachelor of Arts degree.

“After an extensive search, we are very pleased to have Charlotte lead our team in Europe,” said Al Kelly, chief executive officer of Visa Inc. “Charlotte’s depth of experience and outstanding accomplishments in the European financial services market will be a great addition to our global management team. She will lead the effort to expand our merchant and financial institution relationships, and capitalize on the tremendous growth opportunity in the European region.”

“I’m honored and thrilled to be joining Visa at this time. Across Europe, as well as globally, the developments in digital and payments provide new opportunities for consumers, financial institutions and merchants,” said Ms. Hogg. “It will be a privilege to work with colleagues across the globe to bring European clients the deep technological expertise and innovation for which Visa is known.”

Ms. Hogg joins Visa at a pivotal time in its business and growth trajectory. Visa Inc. acquired Visa Europe Ltd. in June of 2016 to create a single global company, positioned to provide Visa’s European clients with a more seamless experience and to assist them in gaining access to a greater range of payment capabilities, services and products.

“Visa is entering a very exciting chapter in its history, in which the company has a significant opportunity to harness new payment innovations, offer differentiated payments services and forge new partnerships. This will drive growth and deliver increased value to Visa’s clients and their customers across the region,” said Gary Hoffman, chairman of the board for Visa Europe Limited. “Ms. Hogg’s long-standing relationships in European and global markets will be a tremendous asset that will undoubtedly accelerate our business and help us continue our strong track record of success.”

About Visa Inc.
Visa Inc. (NYSE: V) is the world’s leader in digital payments. Our mission is to connect the world through the most innovative, reliable and secure payment network – enabling individuals, businesses and economies to thrive. Our advanced global processing network, VisaNet, provides secure and reliable payments around the world, and is capable of handling more than 65,000 transaction messages a second. The company’s relentless focus on innovation is a catalyst for the rapid growth of connected commerce on any device, and a driving force behind the dream of a cashless future for everyone, everywhere. As the world moves from analog to digital, Visa is applying our brand, products, people, network and scale to reshape the future of commerce. For more information, visit usa.visa.com/aboutvisa, visacorporate.tumblr.com and @VisaNews.

Source: Visa Inc.

Visa Inc.
Media Relations:
Elvira Swanson (Europe), +44 20 7795 5336
europeanmedia@visa.com
Amanda Pires (Global), +1-650-445-8169
globalmedia@visa.com
or
Investor Relations:
Victoria Hyde-Dunn, +1-650-432-7644
ir@visa.com

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Visa enables Visa payments on Fitbit’s first smartwatch – Fitbit Ionic™

“How We Will Pay”* study shows consumers who own wearables buy more, prefer cashless purchases and view devices as eliminating buying friction

SAN FRANCISCO, 2017-Aug-29 — /EPR Retail News/ — Visa (NYSE:V) today (Aug. 28, 2017) announced it is enabling Visa payments on Fitbit’s first smartwatch – Fitbit Ionic™. Eligible cardholders of participating banks will be able to make payments with Fitbit Pay™, Fitbit’s new payment function, when available. With Fitbit Pay, Visa and Fitbit are meeting demand amongst the majority of wearable owners who, according to the recent “How We Will Pay” survey* by PYMNTS and Visa, see the opportunity for wearables to improve the way they pay throughout their day with a more secure and seamless cashless payment experience.

The continuous rise in mobile connectivity has led to the proliferation of digital payments, with Visa helping to offer more ways to pay through devices such as phones, watches and now fitness trackers with the new Fitbit Ionic – no physical wallet required. To make Visa purchases using the Fitbit Ionic device, users simply load an eligible Visa credit or debit card on the Fitbit companion app and hold the smartwatch near an NFC-enabled terminal for a simple and secure way to make purchases on the go.

“Visa continues to focus on delivering the tools and technologies that empower our partners to offer safe, secure and convenient payments to consumers via connected devices,” said Jim McCarthy, executive vice president of innovation and strategic partnerships at Visa Inc. “Partnering with Fitbit on its new Fitbit Pay service is another step forward in the growth of Internet of Things and shows how Visa is enabling companies across the technology industry to help us all move towards a cashless future.”

Fitbit Pay provides secure payments through the Visa Token Service. Tokenization is a payment security technology that replaces card account information, such as account numbers and expiration dates, with a unique digital identifier (“token”) that is used for payment without exposing a cardholder’s more sensitive account information. Active accountholders can leave their wallet at home and pay with a touch of their wrist.

“We are proud to partner with Visa and offer the ability to pay on the go with Fitbit Pay on Fitbit Ionic, offering more convenience for our users to help them reach their health and fitness goals,” said Jon Oakes, VP of Product Management at Fitbit. “Whether grabbing a smoothie post-run or paying for a coffee while counting steps on a city tour, we are delighted to give users the option to leave their wallet at home and simply pay with their device. We are happy to be working with Visa to give our customers what they want.”

“How We Will Pay” Wearables Survey Data

The “How We Will Pay” study* finds the majority of consumers want their wearables to allow them to make everyday purchases, in a safe and seamless way. New wearables, like the Fitbit Ionic, address some of the priorities and concerns identified by survey respondents – including safety/security concerns, reducing friction when making a purchase and providing a way to pay without carrying a wallet.

  • Consumers who own wearables buy more: The study showed wearables owners buy more things than the average consumer in all product categories, ranging from apparel and food to personal care products and more.
  • Wearable and non-wearable owners prefer to go cashless: More than 60 percent of all respondents – wearables owners and non-wearables owners – preferred cards and digital payments over cash.
  • Wearables improve personal productivity: More than 85 percent reported that wearables help save time and improve efficiency. The seamless payments made possible by the Fitbit Ionic may reduce friction for the active Fitbit consumers when they are making a payment.
  • Security and theft are two major concerns for wearable device owners: More than 70 percent of wearable owning respondents reported that they worry about data privacy and theft. Visa Token Service provides a safer and more secure way to pay, addressing this concern for Fitbit Ionic users.

For more information on Visa’s role in the Internet of Things and the “How We Will Pay” survey results, please visit – www.visa.com – and follow the conversation at @VisaNews.

*The “How We Will Pay” survey was conducted among a panel of approximately 2,600 adult users ages 18 and older within the United States by PYMNTS on behalf of Visa from April- May 2017

About Visa

Visa Inc. (NYSE: V) is a global payments technology company that connects consumers, businesses, financial institutions, and governments in more than 200 countries and territories to fast, secure and reliable electronic payments. We operate one of the world’s most advanced processing networks — VisaNet — that is capable of handling more than 65,000 transaction messages a second, with fraud protection for consumers and assured payment for merchants. Visa is not a bank and does not issue cards, extend credit or set rates and fees for consumers. Visa’s innovations, however, enable its financial institution customers to offer consumers more choices: pay now with debit, pay ahead with prepaid or pay later with credit products. For more information, visit usa.visa.com/about-visa, visacorporate.tumblr.com and @VisaNews.

Contact:
Katie Harris-Maines
415-810-4930
KathHarr@visa.com

Source: Visa Inc.

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Visa supports the new global QR Code Payment Specifications from EMVCo

Visa Ready program simplifies onboarding for small and medium-sized merchants who want to deploy QR code digital payments

SAN FRANCISCO, 2017-Aug-02 — /EPR Retail News/ — Today (Aug. 1, 2017) Visa (NYSE:V) announced its support of the new global QR Code Payment Specifications from EMVCo, the global technical body that manages the EMV Specifications. The specifications cover consumer-presented and merchant-presented QR code use cases for digital payment acceptance. QR codes are two-dimensional machine-readable barcodes, used to facilitate mobile payments at the point-of-sale.

Visa and the other EMVCo Members worked to develop these new globally interoperable EMV specifications. Visa has already successfully enabled the merchant-presented QR technology in 15 countries around the world, with India, Kenya and Nigeria currently live in market with both bank and merchant partners.

“We’ve already seen tremendous progress towards adoption of standardized, interoperable QR code payment systems in the developing world,” said Sam Shrauger, SVP, Digital Products, Visa. “We are working with governments and central banks in countries like India to develop and implement QR code payment solutions that provide the convenience and security that are synonymous with Visa and help the journey toward a cashless future.”

Easy Implementation for Merchants

Visa has enabled the growth of merchant-presented QR code payments around the world with its innovative mobile payments solution, mVisa. mVisa allows consumers to pay for goods and services by scanning a QR code on a smart phone or entering a merchant number into their feature phones. Payment goes straight from the consumer’s Visa account into the merchant’s account and provides real-time notification to both parties. mVisa is completely interoperable, meaning that the consumer and the merchant do not need to be customers of the same bank. This brings the same convenience, security and reliability provided by the trusted Visa brand.

For merchants eager to harness the power of QR code payments, the Visa Ready Program has adopted the interoperable QR standards to develop tools and capabilities which help easy generation and deployment of QR code merchants by banks, processors and merchant aggregators. Once enrolled, merchants can freely accept payments from any country or bank given mVisa’s interoperability while trusting Visa will securely and efficiently process each transaction.

QR Code Payments Driving a Cashless Future

As digital payments help continue a shift toward a cashless future, this new global specification is an important step that promotes interoperability and standardizes the fast growing ecosystem of QR code payments across the world. Already, 33 banks and more than 328,000 merchants across India, Kenya and Nigeria have adopted the interoperable standards as they accelerate their QR code digital payment programs.

“mVisa enables successful completion of the transaction independent of the mobile operator service on both the consumer and the merchant’s phone, and the consumers and merchant’s banks,” said Shrauger. “This addresses a major challenge with mobile money programs, and lets consumers and merchants choose their own bank or mobile operator.”

Reserve Bank of India has encouraged the adoption of standardized QR code payments to provide access to low-cost, secure digital payments to millions of consumers and merchants. Working with our partners, Visa is converting both everyday and recurring cash purchases to digital payments through direct integrations with supermarket chains and large utility billers. By presenting dynamic QR codes to consumers that provide a seamless payment experience, billers such as Tata Sky, Idea Cellular, Reliance Energy, Mahanagar Gas, as well as Pizza Hut and supermarket chains Nakumatt, Spar, and Zucchini, are bringing benefits of digital payments to millions of potential customers.

Visa intends to replicate this success in 12 other countries where mVisa has been enabled: Cambodia, Egypt, Ghana, Indonesia, Kazakhstan, Malaysia, Pakistan, Rwanda, Tanzania, Thailand, Uganda and Vietnam.

About Visa

Visa Inc. (NYSE: V) is a global payments technology company that connects consumers, businesses, financial institutions, and governments in more than 200 countries and territories to fast, secure and reliable electronic payments. We operate one of the world’s most advanced processing networks — VisaNet — that is capable of handling more than 65,000 transaction messages a second, with fraud protection for consumers and assured payment for merchants. Visa is not a bank and does not issue cards, extend credit or set rates and fees for consumers. Visa’s innovations, however, enable its financial institution customers to offer consumers more choices: pay now with debit, pay ahead with prepaid or pay later with credit products. For more information, visit https://usa.visa.com/ and @VisaNews.

Contact:
Andy Gerlt
415-805-5153
agerlt@visa.com

Source: Visa Inc.

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Visa and Marqeta partner to drive further innovations in commercial and consumer payments

Visa Makes Strategic Investment in Marqeta to Support Key Growth Initiatives

SAN FRANCISCO & OAKLAND, Calif., 2017-Jul-28 — /EPR Retail News/ —Visa (NYSE: V) and Marqeta, the open API payment card issuing platform, today (07/26/2017) announced a multi-year, global partnership to drive further innovations in commercial and consumer payments. Additionally, Visa has made a strategic investment in Marqeta to support Marqeta’s domestic and international growth objectives.

The initial efforts of the partnership will involve growing opportunities for virtual, physical and tokenized payments across a number of commercial markets and use cases that can benefit from Marqeta’s developer-friendly platform.

“We’re excited to partner with Marqeta to collectively bring our unique assets and capabilities to more partners and clients globally,” said Jim McCarthy, executive vice president, innovation and strategic partnerships, Visa. “We are always looking for partnerships and investments that allow us to evaluate innovative, new ways to support our clients’ needs, and increasingly see open, developer-friendly platforms as a way to help clients move quickly in today’s fast-paced environment.”

The market for electronic payments continues to grow in commercial payables, alternative lending, disbursements, eCommerce, on-demand services and P2P payments. To enable this growth, Marqeta’s platform and patent-pending Just-In-Time (“JIT”) Funding feature allows companies of all sizes to authorize their own card transactions, fundamentally changing how companies engage with card issuing and transaction processing. Developers on Marqeta’s platform can sign up for a sandbox in under a minute and then leverage Marqeta’s modern set of card controls and configurations to get a fully funded card program to market in a matter of days.

“The Marqeta core processing platform is architected from the ground up to be the most modern, flexible and developer friendly platform anywhere in the market today,” said Marqeta CEO, Jason Gardner. “We’re democratizing access to innovation for new issuers and fintech players, and we’re proud to partner with Visa and its broader ecosystem.”

This is the latest partnership and investment for Visa with an emerging innovator within the payments ecosystem. As a global payments technology company, Visa continually evaluates technologies of all kinds – especially those that have the potential to advance digital payments for Visa’s clients and their customers. Recently, Visa has made investments in Chain, Klarna, Square and Stripe, among others.

About Visa

Visa Inc. (NYSE: V) is a global payments technology company that connects consumers, businesses, financial institutions, and governments in more than 200 countries and territories to fast, secure and reliable electronic payments. We operate one of the world’s most advanced processing networks — VisaNet — that is capable of handling more than 65,000 transaction messages a second, with fraud protection for consumers and assured payment for merchants. Visa is not a bank and does not issue cards, extend credit or set rates and fees for consumers. Visa’s innovations, however, enable its financial institution customers to offer consumers more choices: pay now with debit, pay ahead with prepaid or pay later with credit products. For more information, visit usa.visa.com/about-visa, visacorporate.tumblr.com and @VisaNews.

About Marqeta

Marqeta is the first modern card issuing and core processing platform, powering prepaid, debit and credit cards for the world’s top commerce innovators. Marqeta’s advancements represent the first fundamental updates in the past twenty years to card issuing platforms, a $30 trillion addressable market covering all possible cardable spending. Marqeta employs more than 100 people and is headquartered in Oakland, California. For more information, visit Marqeta on our website, Twitter, and LinkedIn.

Media Relations:
Visa
Kryssa Guntrum
415-805-4488
kguntrum@visa.com

Bite Communications for Marqeta
Erin Freeley
646-246-1962
Marqeta@biteglobal.com

Source: Visa Inc.

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Visa launches new program to encourage businesses to go cashless

SAN FRANCISCO, 2017-Jul-13 — /EPR Retail News/ — Today (Jul. 12, 2017) Visa (NYSE:V) announced it is launching a major effort to encourage businesses to go cashless. Aiming to create a culture where cash is no longer king, the program will give merchants increased ability to accept all forms of global digital payments. Visa will be encouraging and helping merchants go cashless by using innovation to their advantage in order to stay competitively connected to their customers.

To encourage businesses to go cashless, Visa is announcing The Visa Cashless Challenge, with a call to action for small business restaurants, cafés or food truck owners to describe what cashless means for them, their employees and customers. Visa will be awarding up to $500,000 to 50 eligible US-based small business food service owners who commit to joining the 100% cashless quest.

“At Visa, we believe you can be everywhere you want to be, and that it should be easy to pay and be paid in more ways than ever – whether it’s a phone, card, wearable or other device,” said Jack Forestell, head of global merchant solutions, Visa Inc. “With 70% of the world, or more than 5 billion people, connected via mobile device by 20201, we have an incredible opportunity to educate merchants and consumers alike on the effectiveness of going cashless.”

Benefits of Going Cashless

Visa has recognized the net benefits for merchants when they reduce dependency on cash transaction. Visa recently conducted a study that found that if businesses in 100 cities transitioned from cash to digital, their cities stand to experience net benefits of $312 billion per year. According to this study, in New York City alone, businesses could generate an additional $6.8 billion in revenue and save more than 186 million hours in labor, by making greater use of digital payments. This amounts to more than $5 billion annual costs savings for businesses in New York. The complete results with the benefits of going cashless for businesses will be included in the “Cashless Cities: Realizing the Benefits of Digital Payments” report that will be released by Visa later this year.

Cashless in Action

To showcase the benefits of going cashless, Visa will tap into its sponsorship as the official payment partner of Formula E to offer cashless, digital payment acceptance at the first-ever Formula E race in Brooklyn, the New York City ePrix.

“To Visa, a cashless culture means convenience, security and ease of use. That translates to freedom for consumers and merchants alike,” said Forestell. “The Formula E race is the ideal backdrop because just as Formula E is bringing the future to racing, Visa is bringing the future to payments.”

In addition, local New York City restaurants, including 2nd City, Fish Cheeks, and Mulberry and Vine are offering their customers cashless experiences during the race weekend. These participating venues are bringing to life paperless, seamless and enhanced payment experiences for their customers over the weekend.

About Visa

Visa Inc. (NYSE: V) is a global payments technology company that connects consumers, businesses, financial institutions, and governments in more than 200 countries and territories to fast, secure and reliable electronic payments. We operate one of the world’s most advanced processing networks — VisaNet — that is capable of handling more than 65,000 transaction messages a second, with fraud protection for consumers and assured payment for merchants. Visa is not a bank and does not issue cards, extend credit or set rates and fees for consumers. Visa’s innovations, however, enable its financial institution customers to offer consumers more choices: pay now with debit, pay ahead with prepaid or pay later with credit products. For more information, visit https://usa.visa.com/ and @VisaNews.

1 Source: Cisco Visual Networking Index Global Mobile Data Traffic Forecast Update, 2015-2020

Contact:
Aida Hadzibegovic
415-805-4242
ahadzibe@visa.com

Source: Visa Inc.

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Visa invests in one of Europe’s fastest growing online payments companies Klarna

Future collaboration will enhance payment experiences for consumers in Europe

NEW YORK and COPENHAGEN, Denmark, 2017-Jun-30 — /EPR Retail News/ —  Today (06/27/2017), Visa (NYSE:V) and Klarna announced they have reached an agreement for Visa to invest in Klarna, and intend to develop a future strategic partnership. Klarna is one of Europe’s fastest growing online payments companies, serving 60 million consumers and 70,000 retailers.

The equity investment and planned partnership demonstrate Visa and Klarna’s shared vision to accelerate online and mobile commerce for the benefit of consumers and merchants across Europe. The announcement was made at Money 20/20 being held in Copenhagen through June 28.

Visa’s planned investment is part of a global strategy to open up the Visa ecosystem and support a broad range of new partners who are helping to redefine and enhance the purchase experience for millions of consumers globally. Klarna develops products that address changing consumer preferences, giving them the flexibility and seamless experience they expect when shopping.

“Klarna has demonstrated an expertise in consumer credit and online purchasing and together, we share a vision for how today’s online and mobile commerce experiences can be as simple as they are in the real world,” said Jim McCarthy, executive vice president, innovation and strategic partnerships, Visa Inc. “Visa is committed to partnering with a new generation of partners and payment providers to bring secure, online commerce to many more consumers in Europe. We look forward to working more closely with Klarna to accomplish this.”

“The Visa and Klarna partnership is a natural fit. We both understand consumer credit and the value of consumer centricity in developing innovative payment solutions,” said Sebastian Siemiatkowski, chief executive officer and co-founder of Klarna.

“Klarna continually strives to offer the most advanced choice of payment solutions for our merchants and give consumers the smoothest buying experiences. Partnering with Visa will give us the opportunity to strengthen our global presence and product portfolio by leveraging our combined assets. We are excited about the possibilities of what we can do together.”

According to Forrester, Europe is expected to see double-digit growth in online sales in the coming years. By 2021, the growth in the number of connected devices and improvements in mobile connectivity will drive online sales to reach 12 percent of the region’s total retail sales.  Additionally, online retail sales are expected to grow at an average rate of 12 percent per year over the next five years in Western Europe.

About Visa
Visa Inc. (NYSE: V) is a global payments technology company that connects consumers, businesses, financial institutions, and governments in more than 200 countries and territories to fast, secure and reliable electronic payments. We operate one of the world’s most advanced processing networks — VisaNet — that is capable of handling more than 65,000 transaction messages a second, with fraud protection for consumers and assured payment for merchants. Visa is not a bank and does not issue cards, extend credit or set rates and fees for consumers. Visa’s innovations, however, enable its financial institution customers to offer consumers more choices: pay now with debit, pay ahead with prepaid or pay later with credit products. For more information, visit our website (www.visaeurope.com), the Visa Vision blog (vision.visaeurope.com), and @VisaInEurope

About Klarna
Klarna is one of Europe’s leading payments providers that aims to make the payment process simple, smooth and safe for customers and its merchant partners. Klarna works together with 70,000 merchants to offer payment solutions to more than 60 million users in Europe and North America. Klarna, headquartered in Stockholm Sweden, has 1,500 employees and is active in 18 countries. The company was founded in 2005 was recently named as one of the top disrupter companies in the world by CNBC.

Editor’s Note: Jim Lofgren, vice president and general manager of Klarna North America, is available to explain the announcement and provide commentary for print and broadcast organizations. Contact the Feintuch Communications team for assistance.

SOURCE Klarna; Visa

Richard Anderson, 718-986-1596; Doug Wright, 212-808-4903 ; Henry Feintuch, 212-808-4901; Feintuch Communications, klarna@feintuchpr.com

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Visa Commits to Strategic Investment in Klarna; Companies Plan Partnership Deal

NEW YORK and COPENHAGEN, Denmark, 2017-Jun-29 — /EPR Retail News/ — Visa (NYSE:V) and Klarna announced they have reached an agreement for Visa to invest in Klarna, and intend to develop a future strategic partnership. Klarna is one of Europe’s fastest growing online payments companies, serving 60 million consumers and 70,000 retailers.

The equity investment and planned partnership demonstrate Visa and Klarna’s shared vision to accelerate online and mobile commerce for the benefit of consumers and merchants across Europe. The announcement was made at Money 20/20 being held in Copenhagen through June 28.

Visa’s planned investment is part of a global strategy to open up the Visa ecosystem and support a broad range of new partners who are helping to redefine and enhance the purchase experience for millions of consumers globally. Klarna develops products that address changing consumer preferences, giving them the flexibility and seamless experience they expect when shopping.

“Klarna has demonstrated an expertise in consumer credit and online purchasing and together, we share a vision for how today’s online and mobile commerce experiences can be as simple as they are in the real world,” said Jim McCarthy, executive vice president, innovation and strategic partnerships, Visa Inc. “Visa is committed to partnering with a new generation of partners and payment providers to bring secure, online commerce to many more consumers in Europe. We look forward to working more closely with Klarna to accomplish this.”

“The Visa and Klarna partnership is a natural fit. We both understand consumer credit and the value of consumer centricity in developing innovative payment solutions,” said Sebastian Siemiatkowski, chief executive officer and co-founder of Klarna.

“Klarna continually strives to offer the most advanced choice of payment solutions for our merchants and give consumers the smoothest buying experiences.  Partnering with Visa will give us the opportunity to strengthen our global presence and product portfolio by leveraging our combined assets. We are excited about the possibilities of what we can do together.”

According to Forrester, Europe is expected to see double-digit growth in online sales in the coming years.  By 2021, the growth in the number of connected devices and improvements in mobile connectivity will drive online sales to reach 12 percent of the region’s total retail sales.  Additionally, online retail sales are expected to grow at an average rate of 12 percent per year over the next five years in Western Europe.

 

About Visa

Visa Inc. (NYSE: V) is a global payments technology company that connects consumers, businesses, financial institutions, and governments in more than 200 countries and territories to fast, secure and reliable electronic payments. We operate one of the world’s most advanced processing networks — VisaNet — that is capable of handling more than 65,000 transaction messages a second, with fraud protection for consumers and assured payment for merchants. Visa is not a bank and does not issue cards, extend credit or set rates and fees for consumers. Visa’s innovations, however, enable its financial institution customers to offer consumers more choices: pay now with debit, pay ahead with prepaid or pay later with credit products. For more information, visit our website (www.visaeurope.com), the Visa Vision blog (vision.visaeurope.com), and @VisaInEurope

 

About Klarna
Klarna is one of Europe’s leading payments providers that aims to make the payment process simple, smooth and safe for customers and its merchant partners. Klarna works together with 70,000 merchants to offer payment solutions to more than 60 million users in Europe and North America. Klarna, headquartered in Stockholm, Sweden, has 1,500 employees and is active in 18 countries. The company was founded in 2005 was recently named as one of the top disrupter companies in the world by CNBC.

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Visa enhances payment experiences at official FIFA stadiums

Visa upgrades fan experience at the FIFA Confederations Cup 2017 and debuts the latest payment technologies for fans in Russia.

SAN FRANCISCO, 2017-Jun-15 — /EPR Retail News/ — Visa (NYSE:V), the Official Payment Service Partner of FIFA, today (Jun. 13, 2017) announced that football fans attending the FIFA Confederations Cup 2017 will have a front row seat to enhanced payment experiences at official FIFA stadiums. Visa is implementing 1,600 point-of-sale terminals and deploying 120 mobile concessionaires throughout the stadium concourses, enabling a cash-free experience from kick-off to the final match. These enhancements ensure official FIFA stadiums are equipped with the latest in payment innovation, giving fans safe and secure ways to pay – whether it is a click, dip, tap or swipe.

Understanding football fans want to focus on the quality of play on the pitch, Visa is offering multiple ways to pay that will save fans even more time and give them the opportunity to get back to their seats to catch that dreaded missed goal, corner kick or red card:

  • Visa commemorative prepaid cards, which can be reloaded at contactless Alfa-Bank ATMs throughout the stadiums
  • Visa contactless credit or debit cards
  • Mobile payments with Visa at NFC-enabled terminals

As a global leader in payment innovation, Visa is also collaborating with Russia-based Alfa-Bank, the Official European Bank of the FIFA Confederations Cup 2017, to introduce a Visa NFC-enabled Alfa-Bank payment band, which is available for 1,000 Russian Ruble (approximately $18 USD) at Visa customer service booths throughout stadiums and reloadable using fan’s personal credit or debit cards. Select Visa and Alfa-Bank guests will also be able to use a payment ring for the first time at a FIFA event. The payment ring, attached to a prepaid card, features an embedded NFC-enabled antenna, enabling fans to tap to pay throughout Russia, anywhere contactless payments are accepted.

“As the Official Payment Service Partner of the FIFA Confederations Cup 2017, we are thrilled to bring fans some of the most innovative payment experiences from around the world, enabling them to go cashless at the tournament,” said Ekaterina Petelina, country manager, Visa Russia. “We understand that fans are there for the action on the field and that they value a simple payment experience that gets them back to their seats quickly so they can focus on the match.”

As the Official Payment Service Partner of the FIFA Confederation Cup 2017, Visa will be celebrating the spirit of football in Russia and is looking forward to showcasing the future of digital payments with fans from all over the globe. For additional information on Visa’s sponsorship of the FIFA Confederations Cup 2017, visit www.visa.com.

About Visa Inc.

Visa Inc. (NYSE: V) is a global payments technology company that connects consumers, businesses, financial institutions, and governments in more than 200 countries and territories to fast, secure and reliable electronic payments. We operate one of the world’s most advanced processing networks — VisaNet — that is capable of handling more than 65,000 transaction messages a second, with fraud protection for consumers and assured payment for merchants. Visa is not a bank and does not issue cards, extend credit or set rates and fees for consumers. Visa’s innovations, however, enable its financial institution customers to offer consumers more choices: pay now with debit, pay ahead with prepaid or pay later with credit products. For more information, visit usa.visa.com/about-visa, visacorporate.tumblr.com and @VisaNews.

Contact:
Sheerin Salimi,
1-415-601-1583
shesalim@visa.com

Source: Visa Inc.

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Visa adds 13 new partners to participate in its token service provider (TSP) program

Visa Adds Thirteen New Token Service Providers to Broaden Global Access to Visa Token Service

SAN FRANCISCO & NEW YORK, 2017-Jun-08 — /EPR Retail News/ — Today (June 7, 2017), Visa (NYSE:V) announced it has signed 13 new partners to participate in its token service provider (TSP) program, as the payments industry shifts from plastic to digital and broader access to new standards, such as tokenization, are needed. With demand expected to increase for payments to be embedded into a growing number of devices, services and experiences, Visa has built out a global network of partners to offer secure, digital payment token services and ensure that regardless of form factor, an Internet-of-Things (IoT) device, appliance, wearable or beyond, can become a more secure place for commerce.

The newest Visa partners share a desire to advance digital and device-based payments, and represent all major regions of the globe:

  • Global: FitPay, Infosys, Rambus
  • Asia Pacific/India: Mahindra Comviva, PayCraft
  • Central Europe, Middle East & Africa: Digiseq, FOO, Pri-Num, Seglan
  • Latin America & the Caribbean: HST, Prosa, VeriTran, YellowPepper

“A potential tidal wave of new payment accounts is approaching — conservative estimates expect 21 billion Internet-connected devices in just three more years,* so having both the partner network and the right technology in place are fundamental to driving payments on those devices,” said Jim McCarthy, executive vice president, innovation and strategic partnerships, Visa Inc. “We are proud to welcome so many great new partners to the token service provider program, to help us extend tokenization to new devices and form factors and give consumers more payment experiences that they love.”

Visa first announced its token service provider program in October 2016 with initial partners Giesecke+Devrient (G+D), Gemalto and Inside Secure. Since then, G+D, FitPay, Infosys, Inside Secure, and Pri-Num, have been Visa Ready-qualified and begun integrations of Visa technology with partners. The Visa Ready Program provides structure and clarity to allow partners to quickly introduce devices, software, and solutions that can initiate or accept Visa payments.

“Commerce is quickly spreading from computers, smartphones and tablets to connected endpoints of all shapes and sizes,” said Jordan McKee, principal analyst, 451 Research. “Consumers now expect to be able to purchase goods and services at any given time or place on the device of their choosing. What’s more, they expect the experience to be not only secure, but easy-to-use. To meet these elevated demands, commerce stakeholders must collaborate on approaches such as tokenization to ensure security and usability are maintained at scale.”

Visa’s token service provider program gives technology companies a standards-based approach and access to Visa’s broad network of tools and services, including the Visa Token Service, as well as integration, development and marketing support. The program also helps expand the market for tokenization to other companies as they develop new and secure digital payment services and promotes consistency envisioned in the EMVCo token standards.

Tokenization is a payment security technology that replaces cardholder information, such as account numbers and expiration dates, with a unique digital identifier (a “token”) that can be used for payment without exposing a cardholder’s more sensitive account information.

Any organization interested in working with Visa’s global network of token service providers to become a token service requestor can contact Visa directly at Tokenrequester@visa.com.

** Gartner, IoT report, February 2017, http://www.gartner.com/newsroom/id/3598917

About Visa

Visa Inc. (NYSE: V) is a global payments technology company that connects consumers, businesses, financial institutions, and governments in more than 200 countries and territories to fast, secure and reliable electronic payments. We operate one of the world’s most advanced processing networks — VisaNet — that is capable of handling more than 65,000 transaction messages a second, with fraud protection for consumers and assured payment for merchants. Visa is not a bank and does not issue cards, extend credit or set rates and fees for consumers. Visa’s innovations, however, enable its financial institution customers to offer consumers more choices: pay now with debit, pay ahead with prepaid or pay later with credit products. For more information, visit usa.visa.com/about-visa, visacorporate.tumblr.com and @VisaNews.

SOURCE: Visa Inc.

Visa Inc.
Kryssa Guntrum
415-805-4488
kguntrum@visa.com

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Visa provides full line-item details of Amazon Business purchases to U.S. accountholders

Bank of America Merrill Lynch, Citi and PNC Bank first to help their corporate customers streamline expense management

SAN FRANCISCO, 2017-Apr-12 — /EPR Retail News/ — Today (Apr. 10, 2017), Visa Inc. (NYSE:V) has become the first card network to enable participating issuers to provide their U.S. commercial account holders a comprehensive view of their Amazon Business purchases. The new enhanced transaction data functionality, initially available to Bank of America Merrill Lynch, Citi and PNC Bank, N.A., U.S. commercial accountholders through Amazon Business, provides full line-item details on Amazon Business customers’ purchases made with their Visa commercial card and can seamlessly integrate with popular reconciliation tools.

“Tracking and reconciling online purchases made with commercial cards can be a time-consuming task, and at Visa, we are continuously looking for innovative ways to simplify the process,” said Vicky Bindra, global head of products & solutions at Visa Inc. “Visa’s collaboration with Amazon Business and our bank partners will ultimately help our commercial account holders in the U.S. spend less time on reconciliation of their purchases and allow more card management options – all with the existing value and cost-savings that come with an Amazon Business account.”

Amazon Business allows registered businesses and their designated Visa commercial accountholders to easily make business purchases, and provides them with unique and valuable benefits, including:

  • Ability to search, compare and buy products from a variety of suppliers, including business-only selection and pricing.
  • Free Two-Day Shipping on eligible orders of $49 or more.
  • Tracking of multiple shipments and purchases on one account to help eliminate the hassle of dealing with multiple suppliers and invoices.
  • Full line-item detail on Amazon Business purchases for improved visibility and enhanced analytics.
  • Customized account-management tools, such as ability to set up multi-user accounts and spending limits.

Financial Institutions Enabling Enhanced Transaction Data on Amazon Business

Today, three Visa clients across the U.S. are enabling this new functionality for their commercial cardholders on Amazon Business.

“As organizations’ buying patterns move toward online marketplaces, access to this critical data will help with reconciliation and audit,” said Jennifer Petty, head of Card and Comprehensive Payables for Bank of America Merrill Lynch. “We’re excited to announce this strategic relationship with Visa and Amazon Business to deliver this valuable service to our clients.”

“B2B payments require enhanced data for proper audit, reporting and purchasing control,” said Morgan Salmon, global commercial cards B2B product head at Citi Treasury and Trade Solutions. “We are pleased to join Visa and Amazon Business in offering a streamlined purchase and reconciliation process for our clients.”

“In today’s ever-evolving digital economy, straight-through processing is becoming a requirement, not a luxury. PNC’s ability to collaborate with Visa and Amazon on this initiative will enable us to deliver to our customers richer data attached to each transaction, resulting in more efficient processing and a better understanding of their purchasing activity,” said J. Christopher Ward, executive vice president and head of Product Management for PNC Bank’s Treasury Management division.

For more information about the enhanced transaction data functionality for Amazon Business customers, please visit https://usa.visa.com/run-your-business/amazonbusiness.html. To learn more about the benefits of having an Amazon Business account, please visit www.amazon.com/business.

About Visa

Visa Inc. (NYSE: V) is a global payments technology company that connects consumers, businesses, financial institutions, and governments in more than 200 countries and territories to fast, secure and reliable electronic payments. We operate one of the world’s most advanced processing networks — VisaNet — that is capable of handling more than 65,000 transaction messages a second, with fraud protection for consumers and assured payment for merchants. Visa is not a bank and does not issue cards, extend credit or set rates and fees for consumers. Visa’s innovations, however, enable its financial institution customers to offer consumers more choices: pay now with debit, pay ahead with prepaid or pay later with credit products. For more information, visit https://usa.visa.com/ and @VisaNews.

Contact:
Aida Hadzibegovic (U.S.)
415-805-4242
globalmedia@visa.com

Source: Visa Inc.

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PayPal and Visa partnership to enhance payment experience online, in app and in store for consumers and merchants in Asia Pacific

Digital partnership will enhance the payment experience online, in app and in store

SINGAPORE, 2017-Apr-07 — /EPR Retail News/ — PayPal (Nasdaq: PYPL) and Visa (NYSE:V) today (April 4, 2017) announced an extension of their U.S. partnership in Asia Pacific that will see them work collaboratively to accelerate the adoption of secure, reliable and convenient digital and mobile payments for consumers and merchants in markets throughout the region.

This partnership makes it easier for Visa issuing banks in Asia Pacific to offer their cardholders the ability to checkout anywhere PayPal is accepted online. It also expands the use of PayPal to retailers that accept Visa in physical locations.

The agreement is an extension of the strategic partnership between PayPal and Visa in the United States, announced in July 2016 and provides joint growth opportunities based on the following:

  • Customer Choice: PayPal and Visa will create a more seamless experience for consumers who choose to pay with their Visa card at retailers that accept PayPal. Through collaboration with Visa bank partners, consumers will be able to easily add Visa cards into PayPal from other banking apps.
  • Digital collaboration: Visa and PayPal agree to extend participation in the Visa Digital Enablement Program (VDEP). VDEP provides Visa’s partners with access to tokenisation technology, which enables payment on mobile phones or any connected device. This will expand the use of PayPal to retailers that accept Visa in physical locations.
  • Joint service propositions for emerging markets: PayPal and Visa will work together to expand access to enable the use of electronic payments in emerging markets in the Asia Pacific region.
  • Easier and faster access to funds: Visa will provide the option for PayPal to leverage Visa Direct (Visa’s push payments solution), allowing PayPal customers to move funds to their Visa accounts in real time across multiple markets.

“We could not be more proud of our extended partnership agreement with Visa in the Asia Pacific markets,” said Dr. Rohan Mahadevan, Senior Vice President for PayPal Asia Pacific. “This is a strong signal that our decision to partner in 2016 was the right thing to do for PayPal, Visa and our millions of merchants and consumers in this region. We look forward to partnering with Visa to offer more choice and better experiences together online, in app and in store within Asia Pacific.”

“Visa and PayPal are aligning our businesses to bring best in class payment services to the entire ecosystem,” said Chris Clark, Group Executive, Asia Pacific, Visa. “From emerging markets where we’ll give consumers greater access to electronic payments to driving more seamless ways to pay in developed markets, Visa and PayPal will deliver new commerce experiences across the region.”

About PayPal

Fueled by a fundamental belief that having access to financial services creates opportunity, PayPal (Nasdaq: PYPL) is committed to democratizing financial services and empowering people and businesses to join and thrive in the global economy. Our open digital payments platform gives PayPal’s nearly 200 million active account holders the confidence to connect and transact in new and powerful ways, whether they are online, on a mobile device, in an app, or in person. Through a combination of technological innovation and strategic partnerships, PayPal creates better ways to manage and move money, and offers choice and flexibility when sending payments, paying or getting paid. Available in more than 200 markets around the world, the PayPal platform, including Braintree, Venmo and Xoom, enables consumers and merchants to receive money in more than 100 currencies, withdraw funds in 56 currencies and hold balances in their PayPal accounts in 25 currencies. For more information on PayPal, visit https://www.paypal.com/about. For PYPL financial information, visit https://investor.PayPal-corp.com.

About Visa

Visa Inc. (NYSE: V) is a global payments technology company that connects consumers, businesses, financial institutions, and governments in more than 200 countries and territories to fast, secure and reliable electronic payments. We operate one of the world’s most advanced processing networks — VisaNet — that is capable of handling more than 65,000 transaction messages a second, with fraud protection for consumers and assured payment for merchants. Visa is not a bank and does not issue cards, extend credit or set rates and fees for consumers. Visa’s innovations, however, enable its financial institution customers to offer consumers more choices: pay now with debit, pay ahead with prepaid or pay later with credit products. For more information, visit usa.visa.com/about-visa, visacorporate.tumblr.com and @VisaNews.

Contact:

PayPal
Yvonne Koh
YvonneKoh@paypal.com
+65 6510 6438
+65 8333 8718

Visa
Jillian Friant
jfriant@visa.com
+65 6671 5388
+65 9030 8381

SOURCE: Visa; PayPal

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Lawson starts accepting ATM transactions using JCB, Visa and MasterCard issued outside of Japan

TOKYO, JAPAN, 2016-Sep-22 — /EPR Retail News/ — Lawson will start accepting in-store ATM transactions using JCB, Visa and MasterCard that have been issued outside of Japan from Wednesday, September 28, 2016. The gradual introduction of this new service will be operated and monitored by consolidated subsidiary Lawson ATM Networks Co., Ltd.

Starting on September 28, customers will be able to use overseas-issued JCB cards to withdraw Japanese yen at any of Lawson’s 11,414 ATM machines (end August 2016), and overseas-issued Visa cards to withdraw cash at 2,327 new-style ATM machines. Users of overseas-issued MasterCard will also be able to withdraw Japanese yen at new-style ATM machines starting Tuesday, October 25, 2016.

Use of overseas-issued credit cards at Lawson Japan

Card type Launch date Compatible ATMs Number of ATMs
(end August 2016)
JCB Wednesday, September 28, 2016 All ATMs 11,414
Visa Wednesday, September 28, 2016 New-style ATMs* 2,327
MasterCard Tuesday, October 25, 2016 New-style ATMs* 2,327
China Union Pay Already in use All ATMs 11,414

*Lawson is currently upgrading its ATM machines at a pace of 1,500 to 2,000 ATMs per year. At this rate, the upgrade will be completed by 2020.

Lawson ATM Networks sets a single-use withdrawal limit for overseas-issued credit cards of 50,000 yen. The company also consistently monitors transactions to detect any abnormal activity or suspicious card use.
Other Lawson inbound tourism promotion measures

  • ◆Accept purchases via credit card such as China Union Pay, Visa and MasterCard at all Lawson stores
  • ◆Facilitate electronic payment via Alipay at nine Lawson stores in major airport and hotel locations.
  • ◆Offer a tax-free service at 60 stores, rising to over 100 stores by end fiscal 2016.
  • ◆Print product name in English on the packaging of onigiri rice balls, sushi rolls and private brand ‘Lawson Select’ items.
  • ◆Set up an official account on Chinese Weibo and WeChat SNS to provide customers with the latest information on Lawson.

Foreign customers visit Lawson stores for a variety of reasons and so the amount of money they spend also varies. Some want to buy sweets and daily goods as souvenirs to take back home, while others want to buy drinks, tea or milk to consume in Japan. Offering foreign visitors more payment options along with a cash withdrawal facility will make their Lawson shopping experience more convenient. Lawson is working hard to establish and extend a variety of services across its nationwide network of over 12,000 stores to help ensure international visitors have a comfortable stay in Japan.

Source: Lawson

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RILA: VISA acknowledged that a staggering number of magnetic “swipe” cards have not been replaced with new cards

Arlington, VA, 2015-9-11 — /EPR Retail News/ — As retailers spend billions to upgrade their point of sale terminals to accept new “chip” cards before the October 1st liability shift deadline, the nation’s largest card network acknowledged that a staggering number of magnetic “swipe” cards have not been replaced with new cards.

The most recent numbers announced by VISA indicate that less than one-fifth (18%) of their 720 million debit and credit cards as of July contain a new embedded chip and will be ready for the October 1st EMV shift.

“Large retailers have made tremendous progress installing, testing and now operating new payment terminals to accept chip cards,” said Brian Dodge, executive vice president of the Retail Industry Leaders Association (RILA).  “But while consumers can now spot these new point of sale terminals at many large retailers nationwide, a quick check of the wallet will confirm that many continue to carry cards secured with the outdated and vulnerable magnetic stripe.”

With the October 1 deadline quickly approaching, it is more apparent than ever that most card issuers are not ready for the shift.

Throughout 2015, retailers have expressed frustration with banks and credit unions for issuing chip and signature cards, instead of the chip and PIN (personal identification number) cards issued everywhere else in the industrialized world. The PIN adds a second layer of security making lost and stolen cards impossible to use and counterfeit cards more difficult to create.  Two factor authentication has been the standard in the United Kingdom (UK) for almost a decade, reducing counterfeit card fraud by 56%.  Instead of issuing these cards to their American customers, banks and card networks in the US are only issuing chip and signature cards. Asked why, many bank and card network executives have suggested that Americans are not capable or remembering four-digit PINs, despite the fact that most Americans use PINs to unlock their cell phone on a daily basis.

“Simply put, consumers should be outraged that for banks and credit unions the solution to increased cyber-related fraud is to slowly issue substandard cards,” concluded Dodge.

RILA is the trade association of the world’s largest and most innovative retail companies. RILA members include more than 200 retailers, product manufacturers, and service suppliers, which together account for more than $1.5 trillion in annual sales, millions of American jobs and more than 100,000 stores, manufacturing facilities and distribution centers domestically and abroad.

### ​

Jason Brewer
Senior Vice President, Communications and Advocacy
Phone: 703-600-2050
Email: jason.brewer@rila.org