Compliance and Regulation Archives

Compliant Cash Discount Programs and Surcharge Programs

These days, it seems like credit card processors that offer cash discount programs are popping up left and right. What’s ...

Blame Banks if Tech Companies are Circumventing Banking Regulation

by Sarah Grotta

November 20, 2019

An article in Forbes tackles the topic of Big Tech's desire to “disrupt” financial services. Google, Facebook, and Apple, among ...

Could the Dominos Start to Fall on Apple… and Others?

by Pete Reville

November 15, 2019

According to an interesting article in Finextra this morning, the Germany government is considering a law that would force Apple ...

Here We Go Again: FTC Looks Into Mastercard and Visa Regarding Debit Routing

by Sarah Grotta

November 14, 2019

When the Durbin amendment was enacted, merchants cheered the cap on interchange fees, at least on those cards issued by ...

Note to Apple: Next Time, Bring Your Banker

by Brian Riley

November 11, 2019

“Created by Apple, not a bank” was Apple’s moniker as it tried to popularize the new credit card; this undoubtedly ...

How GIACT Approaches Risk Management & OFAC Compliance

by PaymentsJournal

November 8, 2019

When the United States implements sanctions against a country or a group of individuals, domestic companies are required not to ...

Faster Payments, Faster Fraud, Faster Reimbursement

by Steve Murphy

November 4, 2019

So the U.K. Parliament is at it again, this time recommending that a voluntary consumer faster payment fraud reimbursement scheme ...

Is Apple Pay “Open” or Tilted to Favor Apple as E.U. Suspects?

by Tim Sloane

November 1, 2019

Apple appears to be implementing an old trick once used by IBM and Microsoft by leveraging its control over NFC ...

Is This the End for the OCC Fintech Charter?

by Sarah Grotta

October 23, 2019

Ever since the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) introduced the idea of a special charter for non-bank ...

As the CEO of Clarus Merchant Services and a member of the merchant service and processing industry for over 20 years, I’ve seen a lot of emerging technologies and payment solutions that were going to revolutionize how consumers buy and sell goods. I deliberately moved into the electronic payment industry after personally owning thousands of ATM machines. I saw an incredible opportunity for the future of cashless payments, which would solve the need for better transparency for merchants who were working in a convoluted system wrought with hidden fees. I knew this from personal experience as I was once a merchant myself with several restaurants. Today, the big question that I am consistently asked is, “How is Cryptocurrency going to disrupt the mainstream electronic payment industry?” The transfer of assets has always been based on trust. Like the early years of crypto, the early years of banking in the U.S. was like the Wild West, as there was little regulation over banks and how they conducted business. That lack of trust led to the Great Depression of 1929. Trust was restored to the money system after the government reorganized its federal oversight of banks and added FDIC insurance for deposits. Trust in private financial institutions also played an important role in the mass adoption of credit cards. The first credit card – the Diner’s Club Card – was created in 1950. But the adoption of this new method of payment didn’t take off until Bank of America and other financial institutions issued the cards that established the Visa and MasterCard systems. Today, cryptocurrency is at a similar crossroads. Less than a year ago, it remained in the fringes and even went through its “Crypto Winter.” But last fall, crypto’s image began to change as major organizations began to announce their own venture into issuing digital coins. It started with JP Morgan’s announcement that it would issue a coin. But it was Facebook that brought crypto into focus as the mainstream and digital media pushed the news of Libra. With the U.S Senate Banking Committee recently holding hearings, it’s clear that if Crypto is going to take mainstream transacting adoption it must have the regulatory oversight that credit cards do so all of us can feel safe in trusting those transactions. “Crypto is a new asset class and should be regulated as such,” Circle CEO Jeremy Allaire said. Regulation of cryptocurrencies is a challenging issue that is slowly being addressed on global and national levels in varying degrees. In some countries, such as Germany, bitcoin is recognized as a “unit of account” which citizens may trade freely. Other countries including Switzerland have taken a similar stance in recognizing cryptocurrencies as assets, but are also adopting laws to determine the status of the digital coins as securities and their taxability. The U.S. Government has yet to issue regulations specific to digital currencies and continues to proceed cautiously. “Although cryptocurrencies are innovative and may provide benefits related to automation and validation, they also pose challenges associated with speculative dynamics, investor and consumer protections, money-laundering risks, and governance,” the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System recently said. The Federal Reserve staff continues to “monitor and analyze developments across the spectrum of digital currencies to understand tradeoffs and to consider further these developments in the broader context of widespread payment innovations.” Specific relations to digital assets aside, all cryptocurrencies must comply with Federal regulations regarding money and banking, such as the Bank Secrecy Act, according to Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin. Cryptocurrencies must also meet anti-money laundering and counterfeiting standards, and must register with the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network. In addition, many states have adopted their own wide-ranging regulations, such as California, Texas and New York, where its controversial BitLicense regulates companies or persons residing in the state and using cryptocurrencies. Looking at crypto from the merchant side of the equation, the adoption of Federal Reserve Standards specific to cryptocurrencies will provide a framework that can open the door for digital coins to be readily accepted and processed at the point of sale. The Fed’s standards will set precedents and parameters on what form of cryptocurrency (such as a stablecoin, which is not meant to be speculative and is tied to traditional assets such as the U.S. dollar or gold) can be exchanged for goods and services.

Mass Adoption of Crypto: It’s Coming with Regulation!

by Randy Tillim

October 16, 2019

As the CEO of Clarus Merchant Services and a member of the merchant service and processing industry for over 20 ...

Tag: Compliance and Regulation

Compliant Cash Discount Programs and Surcharge Programs

Blame Banks if Tech Companies are Circumventing Banking Regulation

Could the Dominos Start to Fall on Apple… and Others?

Here We Go Again: FTC Looks Into Mastercard and Visa Regarding Debit Routing

Note to Apple: Next Time, Bring Your Banker

How GIACT Approaches Risk Management & OFAC Compliance

Faster Payments, Faster Fraud, Faster Reimbursement

Is Apple Pay “Open” or Tilted to Favor Apple as E.U. Suspects?

Is This the End for the OCC Fintech Charter?

Mass Adoption of Crypto: It’s Coming with Regulation!

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