On The Web

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Regulation

UK competition regulator provisionally approves PayPal-iZettle deal

April 30 2019

“The UK’s competition regulator has dropped its opposition to PayPal’s $2.2bn takeover of iZettle, after finding that the enlarged payments group would still face “significant competition” from rivals such as Worldpay and Square. California-based PayPal bought the Swedish start-up last year, but was forced to halt integration efforts in the UK after the Competition and […]

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Regulation

Cannabis Banking Reform Is Smart, Necessary and Politically Viable

April 5 2019

“Pressure is steadily mounting on U.S. lawmakers to implement comprehensive cannabis banking reform at the federal level, and that pressure is coming from all directions.Rapid shifts in public opinion and a rising number of states with legal medical and adult-use cannabis sales have laid bare an obvious need to update our banking laws to meet […]

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Providers

The Prepaid Business Adopts a Sanguine Approach As the CFPB’s Big Rule Finally Takes Effect

April 2 2019

• in
• CFPB
• Prepaid issuing

“The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s voluminous prepaid card rule finally took effect with sweeping provisions governing matters ranging from fee disclosures to error-resolution rights to consumers’ access to their accounts. But issuers of prepaid cards and digital wallets have had time to adjust to the CFPB’s rule, which a hostile Congress once tried to quash […]

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Regulation

Democrats Push Financial Inclusion As 2020 Election Race Heats up

March 22 2019

“Boosting access to the U.S. banking system is emerging as a prominent theme as Democrats tap discontent over income inequality ahead of the 2020 presidential election.”

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Regulation

OFAC Issues Sanctions Compliance Program Guidance

May 8 2019

“The Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), an agency of the U.S. Department of the Treasury, administers and enforces U.S. economic sanctions programs against targeted foreign governments, individuals, groups and entities in accordance with national security and foreign policy. OFAC had not previously published guidance addressing essential elements for an effective sanctions compliance program (SCP). […]

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Regulation

U.S. Congress Launches Task Forces for Fintech, AI

May 13 2019

“The Task Force on Financial Technology will examine issues including “the current legal framework for fintech, how fintech is used in lending and how consumers engage with fintech,” the committee stated. The chair of the task force will be Rep. Stephen Lynch (D-MA).”

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Regulation

How Bernie Sanders Would Lower Credit Card Fees

May 10 2019

• in
• Cards

“Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) is teaming up with Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) on a plan to cut the fees that Americans pay on their credit card bills. Sanders’ proposal, which he and Ocasio-Cortez unveiled on Thursday, is the Vermont senator’s answer to an economic concern that has also been highlighted by Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), […]

On The Wires

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Regulation

Token.io and Konsentus Launch Fast PSD2 Compliance Solution by Combining Turnkey PSD2 API With Automated TPP Verification

March 27 2019

• in
• PSD2

“With PSD2’s Regulatory Technical Standards (RTS) deadline passed, European FIs are under pressure to move quickly to deliver open APIs for testing. The Token and Konsentus partnership enables FIs to fast-track PSD2 compliance by connecting to a managed combination of two best-of-breed open banking technology platforms. By connecting banks and FIs to its SaaS PSD2 […]

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Regulation

Cash Here to Stay As Government Commits to Protecting Access

May 3 2019

• in
• Cash

“The future of cash will be protected under plans set out today (Friday 3 May), which will ensure the British public continues to have choice over how they spend their money. The Chancellor, Philip Hammond, will announce plans to help safeguard access to cash by establishing a new group chaired by the Treasury. Bringing together […]

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Regulation

New FinCEN Guidance Affirms Its Longstanding Regulatory Framework for Virtual Currencies and a New FinCEN Advisory Warns of Threats Posed by Virtual Currency Misuse | FinCEN.gov

May 13 2019

• in
• FinCEN

“To provide regulatory certainty for businesses and individuals engaged in expanding fields of financial activity, the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) today issued the following guidance, Application of FinCEN’s Regulations to Certain Business Models Involving Convertible Virtual Currencies (CVC) . The guidance is in response to questions raised by financial institutions, law enforcement, and regulators […]