E-Finance & Payments Law & Policy

Volume: 4 Issue: 10
(October 2010)

News

The US Department of Justice (DOJ) will drop antitrust charges against MasterCard and Visa, after they agreed to give US merchants the possibility to offer customers alternative cheaper payment options. / read more

The adoption of chip and PIN (personal identification numbers) technology in Canadian payment cards has been delayed by six months, Visa and MasterCard said on 24 September. / read more

The European Commission (EC) has outlined plans to give all European citizens access to a bank account, according to the 'Consultation on Access to a Basic Payment Account', published on 7 October. / read more

Features

US
Global
UK / read more

The news that the EU Commission is set to publish a draft regulation specifying an end-date by which the framework for making cross-border euro payments must be harmonised is an important development for the Single European Payment Area (SEPA). / read more

The aggressive pursuit of market share, particularly in the area of online payments and mobile payments, has intensified in the past year, as major credit card companies and dominant e-payment providers such as Paypal, Alipay and Google Checkout, fight for their places in the market. Tom Brown, a Senior Associate at Pinsent Masons, examines the recent events that are dramatically changing the e-finance landscape. / read more

Many electronic money initiatives often develop as an answer to the lack of sufficient existing legal, regulatory and economic infrastructures and are used to support them. Government involvement can bring huge benefits to their further development, as Morten Hofstad, at Luup, discusses. / read more

Over the past few years, mobile banking has become one of the easiest financial solutions for many people excluded from traditional banking. However, this type of banking also poses challenges in terms of regulation and management. Aiaze Mitha, CEO and Principal of Amarante Consulting, discusses how countries around the world tackle the issue of mobile banking. / read more

In the aftermath of the financial crisis, banks and other financial institutions are increasingly looking into new ways of doing business. Bank account lotteries would seem to provide such an avenue, but they are currently forbidden in the US - one of the reasons being they are too risky. Agnes Bundy Scanlan and Tina Petruzziello, of TD Bank, explain the legal framework applicable to state lotteries. / read more

Mobile payments have taken off in the developing world. The use of the mobile phone as an alternative payment method is increasing. Simon Cavill, Director of Strategy at Mi-Pay Ltd, discusses the impact mobile phones have on the developing world as well as migrants far away from home, and how new services change the traditional payment landscape. / read more

The Single European Payments Area (SEPA) is under threat. Recent signs from the European Commission (EC) have indicated that EU Member States might be subject to new regulatory requirements and, inevitably, the original SEPA vision aimed at creating one domestic Euro payments market, will be abandoned. Gerard Hartsink, Chairman of the European Payments Council, discusses what has been happening and which impact such a decision can have. / read more

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About E-Finance and Payments Law and Policy

The monthly law journal covering legal issues in banking, e-finance, e-money and online payments including, mobile payments (m-payments), micropayments, pre-paid cards and other payment cards, online banking, NFC (near field communication) and other contactless payments, digital currencies such as Bitcoin, mobile wallets and virtual money, e-invoicing, e-billing and e-payments, card fraud and other cybercrime, as well as regulatory regimes such as the E-Money Directive (EMD and 2EMD), the Payment Services Directive (PSD), SEPA, the US Electronic Money Regulations 2011, and the UK Bribery Act 2010. / read more