NEWSWORTHY
Credit card trends aren't signaling a U.S. recession, analysts assure
November data reported by credit card issuers like American Express Co. and Capital One Financial Corp. may soothe some concerns about an impending recession and credit deterioration, analysts said. Those worries have been contributing to stock market swings in recent weeks, but the latest ...
Japan hesitantly moves toward a cashless society
Taking out a wallet loaded with cash, receipts and loyalty cards and searching for coins in front of a cashier is a familiar scene at stores in Japan. But the country wants more consumers to kick that habit and engage in cashless transactions using credit ...
Government plans 5% rebates for some cashless payments after 2019 tax hike
The move is among steps the government plans to take to ensure that raising the consumption tax will not put the brakes on economic activity.
Effort to nudge Japan to go cashless with offsets to sales tax hike faces many hurdles
On Oct. 15, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe confirmed during an extraordinary Cabinet meeting that the government would raise the consumption tax from 8 to 10 percent next Oct. 1. The tax hike has already been postponed twice owing to jitters over how it might ...
Japan Post to accept cashless payments by time of Tokyo Olympics
Japan Post Co. plans to accept cashless payments for postcards and parcel deliveries at its post offices by early 2020. Currently, customers can purchase postcards and pay parcel delivery fees at post offices with only cash or stamps, while post offices in many other countries ...
Ukrainian trio nabbed for hacking over 100 U.S. firms, stealing millions of credit card numbers
Three Ukrainians have been arrested for hacking more than 100 U.S. companies and stealing millions of credit and debit card numbers, the Department of Justice announced Wednesday. Dmytro Fedorov, 44, Fedir Hladyr, 33, and Andrii Kolpakov, 30, are high-ranking members of an "international cybercrime group" ...
Japan pushes use of cashless payments as Olympics approach and banks strain
Earnest efforts are underway in both the public and private sectors to promote cashless payments ahead of the 2020 Olympics. Credit cards, electronic money and other cashless systems account for 20 percent of all consumer payments in Japan, compared with 40 percent to 60 percent ...
Amazon looks to secure office-supply dominance with new credit card
Amazon.com Inc. is planning to offer a credit card to U.S. small-business customers, according to people with knowledge of the matter, furthering its push to supply companies with everything from reams of paper to factory parts. The e-commerce giant has been in talks with banks ...
Japan's tourism trade embraces portable credit card terminals
Restaurants, souvenir shops and even temples and shrines are hoping to cater to foreign guests with an international custom yet to be fully adopted in Japan: letting customers pay their bills with credit cards at portable terminals instead of paying at cash registers. As the ...
The IRS suspended a $7.25 million contract with the credit reporting company Equifax Friday after members of Congress complained the tax agency had awarded a no-bid contract to a company that recently had a massive data beach. The IRS had contracted with Equifax to validate ...
In wake of Equifax data leak, U.S. senator launches industry probe
U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren said Friday she has begun an investigation into Equifax's massive data breach, and along with 11 other Democratic senators, introduced a bill to allow consumers to freeze their credit for free. Equifax came under increased pressure from lawmakers and U.S. states ...
Fintech firm uses credit card data to fix holes in Japan's consumption figures
Private consumption is 56 percent of Japan's GDP, so understanding where people are spending and what they're buying is essential to have a clear picture of what's going on in the world's third-biggest economy. That's true not just for the government, but also for ...
