Latest news with #merchants
Malay Mail
15 hours ago
- Business
- Malay Mail
Waiting an infinity for QR code payments to go through?
JUNE 28 — Most people are aware there are some important issues and problems related to QR code payments. These include: security and fraud risks, code interoperability, merchant confusion, refunds, transaction fees, limited adoption, etc. However, there is a less critical but (potentially) no less annoying one. I was standing in line at a nasi kandar shop, waiting for my turn to pay. There were only two other customers in front of me, so I didn't envision a long wait. But then three minutes became five minutes then eight became 10 until not just me but the patrons behind me were like, okay, what on earth is happening? Then lo and behold, we found out the reason for the delay: It appears one of the folks in front of me was waiting for his Touch & Go app to load! Out of embarrassment, the person shyly showed us his screen, with the dreaded 'spinning wheel' reflecting its ongoing attempt to load. Thankfully none of us were facing some national emergency so we all patiently waited and smiled and gave each other 'Yeah I know right' nods. Eventually, perhaps after 12 minutes or so, the problem was fixed and we all managed to pay and leave. However, I wonder if this incident reflects a deeper problem with digital payments in general and QR code payments in particular. As we all know, these mobile banking and e-wallet apps require frequent updates. Long and short, we are certainly going to see longer queues when making payment at shops because the functionality and speed of old phones (or just slow ones) is a problem which won't go away too fast. — SoyaCincau pic That's fine and good given security and performance concerns but, alamak, not everyone possesses high-quality phones which can cater to so many updates and, aiyo, not everyone is phone-savvy enough to close their numerous apps before opening their e-wallets to make payment. Long and short, we are certainly going to see longer queues when making payment at shops because the functionality and speed of old phones (or just slow ones) is a problem which won't go away too fast. In case anyone is tempted to think this is 'not that big a deal', consider that every day in Malaysia we can have literally millions of over-the-counter transactions involving QR payments. Imagine if even 10 per cent of such transactions are stretched five minutes longer? How much time would be collectively wasted? Analogously, isn't this why our government created the MyBorder Pass to save an extra minute or so despite the airport's autogate working relatively fast? Because when you add up all the minutes, the time savings are substantial and everyone wins? I've lost count of the number of times I've had to tell a customer behind me at a KK Mart to go ahead and pay first (despite me being ahead of said person in the queue) because I forgot I needed about 20 seconds for my Maybank app to load and, sigh, I didn't bring my wallet. Now imagine a customer who not only has no other way (apart from the QR code) to make his payment but he also forgot to update his app such that he's got to perform the update on the spot. A perfect storm is if this person's phone is a bit dated and he refuses to let anyone take his place until the upgrade is completed. And you wonder why there are videos of people fighting over wait times! Anyway, if this article does nothing but encourage people who always use QR code payments to kindly get their apps ready before they join the payment counter queue, I'd be happy. We Malaysians certainly need less stress in our lives. * This is the personal opinion of the columnist.
Yahoo
a day ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Mastercard, Visa's merchant fees breach competition law, UK tribunal rules
LONDON (Reuters) -Global payments processors Visa and Mastercard's default multilateral interchange fees which are charged to retailers infringe competition law, a London tribunal ruled on Friday in the latest round of the long-running legal saga. London's Competition Appeal Tribunal unanimously ruled that Visa and Mastercard's multilateral interchange fees breach European competition law, in a ruling in linked lawsuits brought by hundreds of merchants. David Scott, global managing partner of law firm Scott+Scott, which represented the claimants, said the ruling was "a significant win for all merchants who have been paying excessive interchange fees to Visa and Mastercard". Both Visa and Mastercard said they disagreed with the decision and intended to seek permission to appeal. A Visa spokesperson said: "Visa continues to believe that interchange is a critical component to maintaining a secure digital payments ecosystem that benefits all parties, including consumers, merchants and banks." "Mastercard strongly disagrees with today's decision, which is deeply flawed, and will seek permission to appeal," a Mastercard spokesperson said in a statement. Litigation over multilateral interchange fees, which are levied on retailers when cardholders make a transaction, has rumbled on for well over a decade in Britain and elsewhere. Scott+Scott said Friday's ruling was the first time that Visa and Mastercard's commercial card and inter-regional multilateral interchange fees had been found to infringe competition law. The liability trial which led to Friday's ruling took place in early 2024. A ruling following a further trial to determine whether any alleged overcharge was passed on by retailers to customers is pending. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
UK merchants seek alternatives to costly payments: Yapily report
Businesses in the UK are increasingly seeking cost-effective and secure payment methods, according to a recent report by open banking infrastructure provider Yapily. The study highlights merchants' dissatisfaction with high transaction fees and the current chargeback model, which many consider unfair. Yapily's report sheds light on the growing demand for alternatives to traditional card payments. The survey, conducted by YouGov for Yapily, involved over 2,000 UK consumers and 250 merchants. It found that 98% of businesses value lower transaction fees, and 41% want chargebacks removed entirely. Additionally, 77% of merchants express concerns over transaction fees, while 68% worry about fraud risks and 54% about data breaches. Two-fifths of businesses believe the chargeback process favours consumers too much, with 49% wishing for a more efficient process. Meanwhile, consumers prioritise security and convenience, especially for low-value purchases, with 49% favouring ease of use for purchases under £20 and 44% prioritising security for purchases around £100. The report highlights that 58% of consumers would try new payment methods if they offered lower fraud risk. Although open banking is seen as a solution with lower fees and higher security, cards remain the preferred method due to familiarity. Yapily's recommendations aim to drive open banking adoption and create a fairer financial system. Yapily's recommendations include aligning the ecosystem on open banking's value propositions, developing a consumer protection model without chargebacks, and introducing an open banking trustmark. Yapily founder and CEO Stefano Vaccino said, "Open banking has the potential to enrich people's payment experiences beyond other payment methods." Yapily VP for product strategy, innovation and policy Nicole Green added, "Businesses are telling us they need lower costs and better security - which is what open banking offers. 'Now the challenge is finding the tipping point that drives behavioural change among consumers, encouraging them to make the switch at the checkout. 'Rolling out new features like cVRP faster and creating a clear, trusted brand complete with an industry trustmark for open banking payments will encourage adoption.' Yapily is an open banking infrastructure platform in Europe, connecting customers to thousands of banks. The company has raised $69.4m in funding and continues to expand across Europe. "UK merchants seek alternatives to costly payments: Yapily report" was originally created and published by Electronic Payments International, a GlobalData owned brand. The information on this site has been included in good faith for general informational purposes only. It is not intended to amount to advice on which you should rely, and we give no representation, warranty or guarantee, whether express or implied as to its accuracy or completeness. You must obtain professional or specialist advice before taking, or refraining from, any action on the basis of the content on our site.
Finextra
20-06-2025
- Business
- Finextra
Issuers must take urgent action against fraud as chargebacks escalate: By Frank Moreno
Recent data shows that issuers and merchants are struggling with rising chargeback abuse. With all indicators pointing to the already considerable problem growing by a further 24% by 2028, financial institutions (FIs) must act or risk losing both customers and profits. According to the Mastercard's 2025 State of Chargebacks report, abuse of chargebacks is a rapidly growing problem, with both merchants and FIs taking a significant hit. And things are about to get worse. Worldwide, issuers and merchants have seen a 10% increase in chargeback volume in the past year. This rise has been driven by a rapid growth in digitization as consumers lean into the convenience of e-commerce. In addition, the ease of disputing transactions at the click of a button has seen FIs in both the U.S. and UK experiencing a 30% to 40% increase in consumer dispute volumes via their digital channels. In fact, the report suggests that over the next five years, global chargebacks volume is set to grow from $261 million in 2025 to reach $324 million in 2028. For the U.S., this means chargebacks will total a staggering $20.47bn in just three years. For issuers, the picture looks even bleaker. Globally, only 28% of their chargebacks are legitimate disputes, while a whopping 72% are fraudulent (59% being third-party fraud, while 13% is first-party fraud). Card issuers face a complex set of challenges One of the biggest challenges facing FIs when it comes to third-party card-not-present (CNP) fraud that fuels chargebacks is aging infrastructure. Legacy systems are limited in their ability to handle this type of fraud due to outdated architectures, fragmented data, and reliance on rigid rule-based detection. Many systems are also still heavily reliant on manual investigation processes. Tracking fraud is another major headache. The same research found that not all FIs track whether the fraud is first-party or third-party. Misclassification and underreporting could lead to inadequate response strategies and higher operational costs, with FIs burdened by time-consuming and expensive investigations. In fact, some FIs report that they need one full-time employee for every $13,000 to $14,000 in incoming annual cardholder disputes. Issuers can attest: first-party fraud is especially hard to pinpoint. What's more, the cardholder's history may show no prior suspicious activity. Responding to a customer dispute by suggesting that they are lying or committing fraud will hardly help FIs maintain good relationships with their hard-won customers. In the U.S., for instance, FIs and merchants only win around half of their disputes and, in the absence of forensic proof, they are likely to issue the chargeback – even if the suspicions are valid. Take action early to avoid future pain Many Fis may not be aware what a significant role an effective 3DS program could play in the fight against chargebacks. Stopping fraud at the point of authentication is the low-hanging fruit in reducing the cost of chargebacks. With the right 3DS access control server (ACS) and modern authentication methods, FIs can combat first-party fraud with forensic proof that the transaction was legitimately authenticated. Moreover, they can tackle third-party fraud by simply detecting fraud more effectively – without adding friction. To reduce the impact of first-party fraud, cryptographic device binding technology is able to link each customer's account to a specific device and app, creating a unique digital signature for every transaction. This allows FIs to prove that a transaction was performed from the legitimate user's device, enabling banks to present strong, tamper-proof evidence to refute first-party fraud claims. To battle third-party fraud, 3DS programs that harness risk-based authentication (RBA) and low- or no-friction authentication methods empower FIs to use strong security that improves the cardholder experience and increases transaction success. However, an FI's 3DS approach should be part of a broader, multi-layered fraud prevention strategy that includes context-aware authentication not only to detect fraud across banking and payment channels more effectively, but also to recognize customers across channels to deliver consistent, streamlined experiences. Creating a better experience There has never been a more urgent time for FIs to consider how to update their chargeback reduction strategy. 3DS is an under-appreciated tactic in that regard. If issuers or merchants are concerned that fraud prevention will add friction that negatively affects transaction success, they are using the wrong fraud prevention authentication tools. Automated tools and AI learning models can help eliminate overall friction for consumers and improve the digital experience, while also providing more effective fraud detection. With robust authentication and clear transaction context, it becomes possible to dramatically reduce fraud and increase transaction success rates. While chargeback abuse and fraud are persistent challenges, new opportunities are available to issuers to combat increasingly sophisticated attempts in their earliest stages with the right combination of 3DS solutions, risk insights authentication, and modern authentication methods. FIs must act now – failure could risk further eroding already pressured margins, and customers looking to competitors that deliver more secure and user-friendly payment experiences.
Finextra
20-06-2025
- Business
- Finextra
Payabl. integrates Prestashop into e-commerce platforms, enabling seamless payments for merchants
European fintech provider payabl. has announced the launch of a new integration with PrestaShop, one of Europe's leading open-source e-commerce platforms. 0 This content is provided by an external author without editing by Finextra. It expresses the views and opinions of the author. The newly available plug-in allows PrestaShop users to connect to payabl.'s end-to-end payment infrastructure, giving online merchants access to over 300 local payment methods, card acquiring, multi-currency support, fraud prevention, and real-time reporting – all through a seamless checkout experience. Through this integration, PrestaShop's 250,000 merchants will now have the option to easily connect to payabl.'s technology and offer customers a seamless, secure, and scalable checkout experience. The plug-in enables merchants to accept card payments and 300+ local payment methods, supporting multi-currency transactions, built-in fraud prevention, and real-time reporting. While e-commerce sales in Europe are expected to surpass €565 billion by 2029*, payabl.'s research has shown 43% of consumers say that they would not return to a retailer after a poor checkout experience**, making the payment experience central to maximising this growth opportunity. This integration means PrestaShop's merchants can feel confident they are offering their customers an improved checkout experience with less friction, as well as faster and safer transactions. Today's announcement reflects payabl.'s commitment to simplifying payment processes for merchants and making secure, scalable solutions accessible across Europe. By launching this integration, payabl. aims to offer PrestaShop merchants an enhanced checkout experience while expanding its presence across one of the largest e-commerce ecosystems in the region. Ugne Buraciene, Group CEO of payabl., said: 'E-commerce continues to grow at pace across Europe, and making payabl.'s technology available to PrestaShop merchants is a natural step in our mission to support businesses with robust, scalable payment solutions. 'Today's consumers expect checkout experiences that are simple, fast, and secure — and our integration is designed to help merchants deliver exactly that. With payabl., businesses using PrestaShop can focus on growth while relying on a frictionless, secure payment infrastructure that keeps up with evolving customer demands.' European e-commerce expansion Reversing the immediate post-pandemic trend of in-store buying, e-commerce sales are now predicted to grow 7.8%. According to Forrester, this will increase by 16% from €389 billion in 2024 to €565 billion in 2029, with contributing factors including a stronger economy, the increasing adoption of omnichannel strategies, better price transparency, and cross-border marketplace expansion. In response to this accelerating demand, payabl. has made its advanced payment technology available to online merchants using the PrestaShop platform. The integration supports the growing need for secure, efficient, and scalable payment solutions across Europe and beyond. payabl. is a leading financial technology provider, delivering end-to-end payment solutions across card acquiring, local payment methods, point-of-sale (POS) terminals, multi-currency business accounts, and card issuing. Its gateway enables merchants to accept card payments and over 300 local methods globally, with seamless integration, real-time reporting, and dedicated support. Combining advanced payment technology with built-in fraud prevention and a high-touch service model, payabl. empowers businesses to grow faster with secure, scalable, and innovative payments.
