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Paul Penrose

Paul Penrose Head of Research at Finextra

No change for interchange

Red faces at the Polish Competition Authority after the European Commission backed down on threats to outlaw credit card interchange fees on retail transactions. (EC abandons retailers and backs down on interchange fees). The Commission – sensibly enough – has decided to stay its hand on interchange in the absence of any obvious alternative fee-c...

/retail EBAday

Paul Penrose

Paul Penrose Head of Research at Finextra

Investors goggle-eyed at Frankfurt exchange

News from the front-line of the electronic trading revolution: Deutsche Börse is to spend EUR4 billion on refurbishing its trading floor! The Frankfurt-based exchange is one of only two bourses in Europe to retain a physical trading floor, even though 97% of the deal volume on Germany's benchmark DAX Index goes through the electronic platform Xetr...

/wholesale

Paul Penrose

Paul Penrose Head of Research at Finextra

Citi to bring Egg back to the boil

Muted cheers across the City after UK insurer Prudential eventually offloaded its loss-making Internet banking operation Egg to Citigroup for £575 million (Prudential sells Egg to Citigroup). The price, at twice book value, is not bad (UK banks typically sell at 1.5 times book value), but it’s a far cry from the £1.1 billion price tag attached to ...

/retail Finextra50 fintech index

Paul Penrose

Paul Penrose Head of Research at Finextra

Microsoft micropayments

Further to my recent musings on Microsoft Points (The Virtual Bank of Microsoft), Dow Jones reports on CNN that Microsoft boss Bill Gates has been looking into the possibility of developing an online payment system that will be cheaper than credit card transactions, making it possible for companies to charge small fees for Web-based content and se...

/payments /retail Trends in Financial Services

Paul Penrose

Paul Penrose Head of Research at Finextra

Funny money

Online universe Second Life has been lauded by the serious business press as a glittering land of opportunity, a rapidly-expanding economy where fortunes can be made by game-players buying and selling land and turning tricks in return for convertible Linden dollars. But when venture consultant Randolph Harrison and a hedge fund manager friend sunk...

/payments /retail

Paul Penrose

Paul Penrose Head of Research at Finextra

The virtual Bank of Microsoft

Is Microsoft trying to create its own online currency? It’s an issue worthy of consideration, following the Zune music player release late last year. Consumers wanting to buy and download songs from the Zune music store are finding that their greenbacks are not accepted at Microsoft’s virtual checkout. Instead you have to convert your hard cash to...

/payments /retail

Paul Penrose

Paul Penrose Head of Research at Finextra

Moving the deckchairs at CSFI

So farewell then David Lascelles, the former banking editor of the Financial Times who co-founded respected City think tank The Centre for the Study of Financial Innovation with Andrew Hilton in 1993. After 14 years at the helm of CSFI, Lascelles is taking up a backroom position as a senior fellow. Over the years the CSFI has forged a reputation a...

/payments /retail

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