Enhanced Cardis Solution delivers an unparalleled opportunity to address low value payments with a win-win for banks, merchants and card schemes.

Amsterdam/London - March 31, 2010

Enhanced Cardis Solution delivers an unparalleled opportunity to address low value payments with a win-win for banks, merchants and card schemes. Supported by Edgar, Dunn & Company, the product solution and economic model has been adapted to fit the unique business and regulatory needs of the European SEPA environment.

Cardis Enterprises International, an innovative payment solutions company, announced today the European introduction of its enhanced low value payment solution with a unique business model that provides a platform to drive cash replacement of everyday small payments.

Citi Tap and Pay Mobile Payments Pilot Breaks New Ground

London - March 2, 2010

Edgar, Dunn & Company release second annual Global Payments Survey

Edgar, Dunn & Company Singapore - January 22, 2010

For the second year running, Edgar, Dunn & Company has conducted a survey of payments professionals globally on key industry dynamics in their markets. The response to this year’s survey involved 645 professionals representing 52 countries.

The survey questions were focussed on five main topics:

Current and future importance of individual payment products
Expected future importance of payment technologies
Most influential market participants
Key industry events that will shape payments markets
The findings illustrate where common themes are developing globally in relation to future trends and, perhaps more interestingly, highlight the key differences in expectations between regions and countries.

Download the Edgar, Dunn & Company Global Payments Survey

Bank of San Francisco Appoints Director David Poe to Chair Advisory Council

San Francisco, USA - August 17, 2009
Ed Obuchowski, president/CEO of Bank of San Francisco, is pleased to announce that David A. Poe, a leading expert in the payments industry and director of Edgar, Dunn & Company, has been appointed chair of the bank’s advisory council.

EurActive.com - January 27, 2010

Payment Security: Banks need to outsmart criminals

Samee Zafar, a director in Edgar, Dunn's London office and an expert in banking security speaks to EurActive on the need for Banks to stay one step ahead of organised cirminals in order to protect online payments from fraud.

Edgar, Dunn & Company have been advising banks in the City of London on the EU's Payments Services Directive (PSD), which is expected to boost online payments, and the implications the Directive will have on payment security and fraud prevention.

Read the full article at EurActive.com

Contactless Intelligence TV - January 25, 2010

Contactless payment in emerging markets: Zafar and Gates TV interview

Samee Zafar and Alistair Gates from Edgar, Dunn's London office were interviewed by Contactless Intelligence TV on the opportunities for contactless payment in developing countries.

What conditions make such countries ideal for contactless implementation, why is the mobile already an accepted tool for financial transactions and what types of technology will flourish there?

The videos are available online from C-I.TV in three parts:

Samee Zafar & Alistair Gates, Edgar, Dunn & Company, Part 1

Samee Zafar & Alistair Gates, Edgar, Dunn & Company, Part 2

Samee Zafar & Alistair Gates, Edgar, Dunn & Company, Part 3

Edgar, Dunn & Company - January 22, 2010

Global Payment Survey 2009

For the second year running, Edgar, Dunn & Company has conducted a survey of payments professionals globally on key industry dynamics in their markets. The response to this year’s survey involved 645 professionals representing 52 countries.

The survey questions were focussed on five main topics:

Current and future importance of individual payment products
Expected future importance of payment technologies
Most influential market participants
Key industry events that will shape payments markets
The findings illustrate where common themes are developing globally in relation to future trends and, perhaps more interestingly, highlight the key differences in expectations between regions and countries.

CNN - January 15, 2010

Samee Zafar interviewed by CNN on mobile banking

Samee Zafar, director in Edgar Dunn's London office who leads the firm's Advanced Payments practice speaks to CNN's Steve Mollman on the opportuities offered by mobile banking to developing nations.

Read the full article on CNN.com here.

The Advanced Payments practice at Edgar, Dunn operates globally to assist card schemes, industry associations, banks, online operators and mobile network operators to build product development strategies, performance analysis of existing services, new market development and identification of emerging growth areas; specifically within online, mobile, contactless and prepaid payments.

Banking Technology News - April 1, 2008

Consumers Heavily Prefer One Card
While many consumers carry a bunch of credit and debit cards, they generally favor one card. TransUnion and Edgar Dunn & Co. have partnered to launch The Revolver Model, a product the firms believe will help card issuers win “preferred” status for their cards by matching consumers’ monthly balance-management tendencies and credit-card usage to perk-oriented marketing strategies.

The model, being piloted at undisclosed issuers, uses survey-based data from the PaymentDynamics 2007 Preferred Payments Study, conducted by TransUnion and Edgar Dunn & Co.

Beth Costa, a director for Edgar Dunn in Pittsburgh, says the average consumer has about five cards, but most lean heavily on one card. Once people start using a credit card, they become accustomed to using it — and will take that card out of their wallet again and again to pay for purchases. “About 85 percent of the time, the consumer selects their preferred payment option” for mundane everyday items, she says.

Bank Systems & Technology - January 1, 2008

The State of Mobile Banking
EDC’s Mobile Payments expert, Ginger Schmeltzer was tapped to contribute to its feature issue on the State of Mobile Banking and article titled, Better Late Than Never which about discusses the growing importance and popularity of mobile financial services in the United States, and how the U.S. Financial services and telecom industries are making long-over due progress toward establishing a mobile banking and payments environment Ginger discusses the M-Banking vs M-Payments market developments:

“According to Ginger Schmeltzer, a manger with consultancy Edgar, Dunn & Company (San Francisco), however the mobile space is shaping up differently in the U.S., than abroad. “In the U.S., the buzz is around m-banking, while overseas it’s more around m-payments,” Schmeltzer explains, “It’s definitely catching on faster from the banks’ perspective, but from the consumer perspective, it’s moving more at pace. Some consumers don’t even know what m-banking is, so it’s still a push product for the banks now.” Schmeltzer stresses that mobile banking and mobile payments, although closely related, are not the the same. “It’s a very fine line,” she says. “If you look at this as a way to access your account for information, that’s m-banking. Once you start transacting with those funds, it becomes payments. Most banks and service providers are using m-banking as a stepping stone to m payments. The end goal is to get into payments.”

The New York Times - December 23, 2007

Holiday Gifts for the Family, and Someday a Car for You
Carmakers are increasingly turning to co-branded credit cards that give customers points for every dollar they spend, which can be redeemed later for gifts, vacations and new cars and services at dealerships.

In many ways, carmakers are trying to mimic the success that airlines like American and United have had with their cards. According to a study this year by Edgar, Dunn & Company, an industry research firm, one quarter of consumers who say they have a co-branded card said they used an airline card. By comparison, just 9 percent of those surveyed said they used an automaker’s car. 

The airlines have succeeded partly because they have created hub-and-spoke systems that force consumers in many parts of the country to use just one or two airlines for most of their air travel.

Pascal Burg, a consultant at Edgar, Dunn, said that is why many people in the Chicago area, for example, use credit cards marketed by United Airlines, which has a hub there. By contrast, consumers have many more choices when shopping for a car, and thus loyalty is more fleeting. “Airlines have a lot of penetration in cities where they have a hub,” Mr. Burg said. “People don’t sign up for frequent-driver programs.”

Paybeforeupdate - December 1, 2007

How to Select the Right Processor
EDC's Prepaid specialist, Steve Karp weighs in on Paybeforeupdate's December issue, How to Select the Right Processor, Learn What Questions To Ask Before Signing a Processing Contract.

"What is the processor's philosophy on reinvesting in technology and developing new enhancements?" asks Edgar, Dunn's Steve Karp. "Some companies have an explicit reinvestment policy. This is important because this is an industry that is continuing to change. As your program needs change, can it tailor its platform and processes to suit you? Or, is this a static platform that has difficulty upgrading?"

Cardline Global - October 30, 2007

Prepaid Will Grow But Take New Forms, Experts Predict
Prepaid cards appear nearly certain to grow in Europe but may take forms barely recognizable today, panelists said last week at the Prepaid Cards Summit 2007 Conference & Expo in London.  Companies that now have nothing to do with the payments business will enter the market and succeed by drawing upon enormous customer bases while keeping the needs of customers in mind, concludes Ken Howes, director, Edgar, Dunn & Co., an international financial services consulting company, and director of the Prepaid International Forum, a United Kingdom-based trade group.

Fortent Inform - September 27, 2007

Payroll Card Programs Expose Banks to Compliance Risks

As the demand for stored value cards increases, financial institutions are moving quickly to roll out various money-transfer programs, among them payroll cards. But compliance professionals say banks should proceed with caution and consider the risks of such programs.

The cards are popular because they offer cost savings for employers, fee revenue for sponsoring banks and provide a money management tool for individuals without access to bank services, said Steve Karp, a manager with financial services payments consultant Edgar, Dunn & Company in Atlanta. But because these cards are primarily by individuals in low-paying, hourly-wage jobs with high attrition rates, they present some anti-money laundering and fraud risks.

Prepaid Press - September 17, 2007

U.S. Consumer Payment Preference Subject of Study
A study by TransUnion, in conjunction with Edgar, Dunn & Company, has provided some intriguing insights into consumer payment preferences, attitudes and behavior. The purpose of the study was to assess what payment methods are preferred by different categories of consumers, based on their credit rating. The authors said that the 2007 study is the first payment preferences survey that combined consumer credit risk characteristics and consumers’ choices of all payment options, including cash, check, credit cards, debit cards, electronic payments and new online payment options.

“This is the first year that debit is number one,” said Beth Costa, director, Edgar, Dunn & Company. “We’ve seen it creep up each year, but now this year, it was number one.” Costa said she was not surprised to see it move into the number one slot because they have seen indications that consumers want to use their own money for some purchases.

Cards International - September 1, 2007

The Transition to SEPA and the Impact of these Challenges
The Single European Payments Area (SEPA) is central to the vision of the European Union.  The creation of a common payments enviornment that is integrated, competitive and efficient will build on a common legal foundation to facilitate the growth of a robust European economy.  These trends may make national borders increasingly irrelevant, reports Ken Howes, an expert global payments consultant and director with Edgar, Dunn & Company, a global strategy firm.