London’s black cabs could be made to offer contactless payments June 19, 2015 Black cabs could be legally obliged to accept contactless credit cards, as a new set of proposals are opened up to consultation. Transport for London has put forward the idea – that contactless payments be accepted in all London taxis – as part of a move to modernise the industry and make it easier [...]
Digital money transfer firm Azimo raises $20m to push its expansion June 15, 2015 Digital money transfer service Azimo has raised $20m (£12.8m) to accelerate its expansion. The latest funding round was led by Frog Capital – backer of local tradesman comparison site RatedPeople.com, as well as MCI Investments and existing investors, including e.ventures and Greycroft Partners. The London-based tech firm, set up three years ago, allows customers to [...]
Banks call for better broadband and phone signals as UK customers switch to mobile banking apps June 14, 2015 The UK’S banking trade body is urging more government investment in broadband, 3G and 4G internet access, as new research shows that customers are becoming increasingly reliant on using their mobile phones and online access to conduct their banking activitys. Mobile phone apps are setting the pace for banking, according to the British Bankers’ Association [...]
How to really make money from Bitcoin – CNBC Comment June 8, 2015 Are you putting all your life savings into Bitcoin, expecting the price to rally higher? Or are you taking bets on a price plunge using complex derivatives? Either way, I have a little tip for you. There’s another way to trade the controversial cryptocurrency and it involves new regulation from New York which was finalised [...]
Apple Pay at WWDC 2015: Commuters will be able to touch in and out of public transport using iPhones June 8, 2015 Commuters in London will soon be able to pay for travel on public transport by touching their iPhones at the barriers, tech giant Apple has revealed. Transport for London's director of customer experience, Shashi Verma, said: "With around one in ten of all contactless transactions in the UK now taking place on our transport services [...]
Plastic eclipses paper cash as card payments soar to £600bn June 3, 2015 Three quarters of all retail spending is now conducted by card, with transaction volumes topping £600bn during 2014 according to new research by The UK Cards Association released today. Data compiled by the industry body revealed over £19,000 was spent on card every second last year, partially driven by the increased use of contactless payments [...]
Cheap money: Reports of the death of cash have been greatly exaggerated May 28, 2015 A landmark proposal has seen the Danish government consider ending the obligation of retailers to accept cash, a global first, with the implication that paper notes and coins could soon lose their grip on their status as legal tender. Figures from the Payments Council released last week, meanwhile, showed that cashless transactions have overtaken the [...]
Six astonishing predictions about the internet in 2019 May 28, 2015 Just eight years ago, there was no iPhone, while a mere decade ago, half of all Britain's internet connections were made via the dulcet tones of dial-up – things change fast. In just a few years' time who knows how the internet will change? Well, there are some quite astonishing predictions that have been made [...]
As non-cash payments overtake hard currency, are we a few years off being a cashless society? May 21, 2015 Dennis Jones, chief executive of Judo Payments, says Yes This development isn’t surprising. One of the key drivers for this is the growth of lower-value transactions being made with cards. TfL alone has seen over 60m contactless transactions in the last six months, which were historically made with cash. And London’s buses are now cash-free [...]
Russell Brand teams up with cryptocurrency firm to fund global revolution April 14, 2015 Self-styled anti-capitalist revolutionary Russell Brand has teamed up with cryptocurrency and crowdfunding platforms to raise funds for his beloved revolution. Brand and his YouTube show the Trews have partnered with Startjoin – a cryptocurrency crowdfunding platform – as well as the cryptocurrency itself Startcoin to raise money for the cause. Russell Brand @RustyRockets, @Trews, @StartJOIN & [...]