Who’s Who

New hires, retirements, and promotions at Bank of America, Marshall & Ilsley Corp., NOVA Information Systems, and Mall Networks.

Tim Arnoult, Bank of America’s long-time Global Treasury Services executive, is retiring effective the end of April, and will be succeeded by Cathy Bessant, who’s been Global Marketing executive since 2002. Anne Finucane replaces Bessant. (Contact: Bank of America, 704-386-4343)

Jeff Bussgang joined the board of Mall Networks, which recently closed a first funding round led by IDG Ventures Boston. Bussgang is a general partner at IDG Ventures. Mall Networks didn’t say how much money it raised in the round. (Contact: IDG Ventures, 617-534-1228; Mall Networks. 608-225-5476)

Christopher S. Kenyon was named executive vice president and general manager of NOVA Information Systems’ First Horizon Merchant Services unit. Kenyon was previously First Horizon’s chief information officer. NOVA is wholly owned by US Bancorp. (Contact: NOVA Information Systems, 678-731-5064)

Michael C. Smith was hired by Marshall & Ilsley Corp. as its senior vice president and corporate treasurer. Smith joins M&I from American International Group, where he was treasurer of the consumer finance group. (Contact: Marshall & Ilsley Corp., 414-765-7831)

New Products and Services from American Express, Visa and More

New products and services from American Express, First Data, Visa USA, and more.

American Express Co. says that this year, the IRS will allow businesses to pay balances-due on their federal business taxes (Form 940, annual employment, and Form 941, quarterly employment business taxes) with an American Express Card. Businesses get double rewards from Delta Airlines and Starwood Hotels when they pay their taxes this way. (Contact American Express Co., 212-640-5503)

Commerciant LP launched a new device it calls the Mobilescape 5000, a wireless handheld device that accepts and processes both checks and credit cards. (Contact: Commerciant LP, 713-725-5526)

The Financial Services Technology Consortium says it’s completed setting interoperability standards for banks to adopt when they communicate about fraudulent checks. More information on the Check Security Features project is available at www.fstc.org. (Contact : Financial Services Technology Consortium, 781-235-3424)

First Data International says it signed new card -rocessing contracts with Bank of Bahamas, Fidelity Bank and the New England Bankcard Association. (Contact: First Data International, 321-263-3838)

Globalive Communications Corp.’s Assemble Conferencing unit, and Enunciate Conferencing, have jointly launched a dual prepaid conferencing and long-distance calling card. (Contact: Assemble Conferencing, 416-204-0251; Enunciate Corp., 416- 516-5173)

Hypercom Corp. says that U.S. Bankcard Services Inc. will be using Hypercom’s multilanguage point-of-sale terminal, featuring Chinese and English graphics and text. (Contact: 602-504-5383; US Bankcard Services Inc., 888-468-1155)

Mall Networks Inc. says it’s launched an online shopping mall platform designed for affinity rewards programs. (Contact: Mall Networks, 608-225-5476)

NCR Corp. says China’s CITIC Bank gave it an order for various NCR ATMs, as well as a maintenance contract for the bank’s 1,000 ATMs. (Contact: NCR Corp., 937-445-3784)

Open Solutions Inc. says $2.4 billion Beal Savings Bank will be using Open Solutions’ core processing system on an outsourced basis. Beal’s main business is customized commercial real estate loans averaging $12.5 million. Separately, Open Solutions says The Simsbury Bank is now using its electronic cash letter settlement product. (Contact: Open Solutions Inc., 860-652-3153)

Princeton eCom says that Veridian Credit Union and Utah Community Credit Union are using its PayAnyone electronic payment product. (Contact: Princeton eCom, 609-606-3130)

SAS says that $15.7 billion Sky Financial Group is using SAS’s Anti-Money Laundering product to comply with the USA PATRIOT Act.  (Contact: SAS, 919-531-0624)

Sify Ltd., an Indian telecom provider, says it’s launched a mobile payments network in association with JiGrahak, which has a mobile payments platform called NGPay. (Contact: Sify Ltd. 91-44-2254 0770)

Visa USA says it’s launching the Visa Prepaid Load Network; consumers can use it in the United States at the point of sale to buy and add funds to their reloadable Visa prepaid cards. Separately, Visa says it’s launched the Contactless Mini Card, which is about half the size of an ordinary credit card. (Contact: Visa USA, 415-932-2350)

Wincor Nixdorf says that Balducci’s will be using Wincor’s point of sale software, chain-wide. Balducci’s, once a fabled New York speciality food retailer, is now owned by an investor group led by Bear, Stearns.(Contact: Wincor Nixdorf Inc., 512-252-5673)

New To Market from HSBC, GE and More

News and new products from First Data, GE Consumer Credit, HSBC, and many, many more payments companies.

The Clearing House Payments Company LLC‘s SVPCO-Electronic Clearing Services unit says daily average check image volume in its Image Payments Network grew 47 percent in February, surpassing one million items a day for the first time. The network processed 19.4 million items in February, a 40 percent increase over January. (Contact: The Clearing House Payments Company L.L.C., 212-613-9896)

Community Banking Systems says Sanderson State Bank, operating in the Houston, Texas area, is using its check imaging system.(Contact: Community Banking Systems, 678-781-7203)

ePassporte, N.V., based in Curacao, Netherlands Antilles, says it has a new product called DirectPay EU that allows European cardholders to move funds from their European bank accounts to their ePassporte accounts over the European ACH network. The platform is manufactured by 2000Charge Inc. ePassporte sells virtual Visa and Visa Electron cards online. (Contact:  ePassporte, N.V., 416-703-7200)

Fidelity National Information Services Inc. says Bankers’ Bank Northeast will courier its checks to Fidelity’s Massachusetts processing centers to be imaged. Bankers’ had been processing its checks at the Boston Fed before those operations were relocated to Windsor Locks, Ct. Bankers’ Bank Northeast is a wholesale correspondent bank for 150 New England community banks. (Contact: Fidelity National Information Services, 904-854-3282)

First Data Corp. says its First Data International unit will be processing MasterCards for Romania’s Credisson International, owned by BNP Paribas. Credisson has about 750,000 card holders. Separately, First Data says that Associated Banc-Corp renewed its credit card processing contract. Associated has been a First Data customer for 25 years. (Contact: First Data Corp., 402-222-6178; Credisson Int’l, 4021-312-02-20)

Fiserv Inc.’s Precision Computer Systems unit says it has a new Web-based compliance tool called PCS Bank Advisor, which was developed by Compass Group Consultants.(Contact: Precision Computer Systems Inc. 605-323-6252)

Gemplus International S.A.says Indonesia’s Bank Buana is using Gemplus’ EMV Dynamic Data Authentication cards. This is the first deployment of chip-based cards in that country. (Contact: Gemplus Technologies Asia, 65-6317-3333)

Global Payments Inc. says nine casinos in the United States and Canada have signed to use its new VIP LightSpeed cash access products. (Contact: Global Payments Inc., 770 829 8245)

HSBC – North America will be issuing a private label card for Brunswick Corp., which manufactures various recreational products, including outboard motors and boats. (Contact: HSBC – North America, 847-564-6761; Brunswick Corp., 847-735-4617)

Jack Henry & Associates Inc. says it will be offering its customers RSA Security Corp.’s Cyota Consumer Solutions authentication products. (Contact: Jack Henry & Associates Inc., 417-235-6652; RSA Security Inc., 781-515-6212)

JPMorgan Chase & Co. says it has a new prepaid debit card that speeds tax refunds to unbanked taxpayers. The money is available to the taxpayer as soon as the IRS electronically deposits refunds and is designed for people eligible for an earned-income tax credit. (Contact: JP Morgan Chase & Co., 212-270-7013)

Lowes Companys is launching a new credit card issued by GE Consumer Finance called The Project Card, which gives users a six-month project window to make as many purchases as they like without incurring any interest or required payments. (Contact: Lowes Cos., 704-758-3504; GE Consumer Finance, 203-585-6252)

NCR Corp. says Germany’s Kreissparkasse Bank will use NCR’s Personas M Series ATMs in its main branch in Koethen, Germany. NCR will also maintain all of the bank’s ATMs for at least three years. (Contact: NCR Corp., 937-445-3784)

Open Solutions Inc. says that $1.5 billion Provident Savings Bank was the beta test for Open Solutions’ new two-factor authentication product, called Security Matrix Two-Factor Authentication. Provident will be rolling the feature out to its customers in April. (Contact: Open Solutions Inc., 860-652-3153)

P&H Solutions says that $40 billion TD Banknorth will be offering P&H Web Cash Manager to its corporate customers. (Contact: P&H Solutions, 781-235-3424)

PaymentOne Corp. says is has a two-factor authentication product called the Identity Verification Service. (Contact: PaymentOne Corp., 408-362-4100)

Payment Processing Inc. says that AccountMate Software Corp. will be offering Payment Processing’s credit card processing services, operating on a platform from software developer ProgRes, to AccountMate’s customers. (Contact: Payment Processing Inc. 510-795-4988; AccountMate Software Corp., 415-883-8873)

Paymetric Inc., says it’s expanding its business relationship with CyberSource Corp. The companies will be offering their respective customers Paymetric’s Web-based payment portal, and CyberSource’s card processing platform. (Contact: Paymetric Inc., 713-895-2066; CyberSource Corp., 650-965-6000)

Qpass says it’s expanding its five-year business relationship with Cingular Wireless. Qpass, which operates Cingluar’s mobile payments operations, bought the assets of First Data Corp.’s Encorous mobile payments platform last year. Now Qpass will power Cingular’s third-party, off-portal business, including merchant management, billing, and subscription management. (Contact: Qpass, 206-267-2023; Cingular Wireless, 404-236-6321)

SVC Financial Services Inc. says it will be using Cardmarte Inc. to process its Scoot Mobile Money product, a cell phone-based, prepaid, re-loadable ATM card. (Contact: SVC Financial Services Inc., 866-370-9600; Cardmarte Inc., 818-325-9925)

U.S. Bank has adopted the Universal Payment Identification Code, or UPIC, which was developed by The Clearing House Payments Co. The UPIC lifts ACH-based payments information from a trade document in a way that allows the information to be processed and re-inserted in the document without revealing the payer’s banking information. (Contact: U.S. Bank, 612-303-0733)

VSoft Corp. says that Integrated Media Management is integrating several of VSoft’s check imaging products into Integrated’s TotaleReceipts software package. (Contact: VSoft Corp., 678-781-7232)

Bill Nelson Joins FS/ISAC as Exec. Director

Bill Nelson, NACHA’s long-time executive vice president, left that organization effective Feb. 1 to be the FS/ISAC executive director. His job: Grow the organization from its current 1,800 members—up from 60 in 2002—and reinforce its mission, possibly to include fraud alerts in its daily information feeds.

“We want every financial institution in the country to be a member,” says Nelson. “There really isn’t any reason they shouldn’t be, in some capacity. So I’m going all over the country as part of an ongoing FDIC road show and pitching it. The U.S. Treasury, the FDIC, and the American Banker’s Association have all endorsed it.”

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Oracle and SAP Going After Global Core Banking Platform Market

Oracle Corp. is preparing to wage war with its main rival, SAP AG, to sell the next generation of core computer platforms to large banks worldwide.

Little wonder; the potential market is big. Financial Insights, a unit of International Data Corp., estimates 2005 sales in the U.S. alone to have been about $6 billion a year, and expects it’s primed to grow a compounded four percent a year, for the next three years. And the global market is much larger.

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