Credit cards
Financial security of US households ‘fell sharply’ in 2022
Inflation comes first in list of financial worries, Fed survey finds
US household debt passes $17 trillion
Mortgage originations fall to lowest level since 2014
Venezuela may join Russian card network
Mir system suffered major setbacks last year after US warning
Russian payment system to start operation in Cuba soon
Ambassador says Mir will help Cuba counter effects of embargo
Eurozone citizens still use cash in majority of transactions
Cash use declines since 2019, but still makes up almost 60% of transactions
Russia’s Mir forced into retreat
Banks and payment systems across Asia banish Russian cards after US warnings
Is there a case for a retail CBDC in Japan?
A BoJ-managed, account-ledger ‘digital yen’ tied to the new Kotora payments may offer some potential
Gontareva on Ukraine’s funding, NBU policy and reconstruction
Former NBU governor Valeria Gontareva speaks about donor funding shortfalls, NBU policy and financial stability challenges, Nabuillina and the seizing of Russian assets, and post-conflict rebuilding and modernisation
Campos Neto predicts end of credit cards
Brazil governor says Pix will be model for region’s payment systems
Chileans’ use of electronic payments is on the rise
Central bank report finds rapid increases in card and online payments.
Cash, not trash: the second lives of substrate
Central banks and their banknote providers are taking a range of approaches to recycling cash
Cash remains most common means of payment in Germany
But share of cash payments dropped from 74% in 2017 to 58% in 2021, Bundesbank finds
Digital money and central banks
Central banks must reflect on the monetary policy, regulatory and financial stability implications from crypto assets, stablecoins and CBDCs to stay relevant in the digital age of money
Visa, Mastercard and Amex suspend Russia operations
Bank of Russia says domestic payments will still be possible across its own systems
Argentine central bank orders foreign exchange sales
BCRA also bans “payments in instalments” for overseas travel as currency weakens
US regulators warn Wells Fargo of new penalties, report claims
Bloomberg says OCC and CFPB believe US bank is moving too slowly on compensating scam victims
Book notes: The pay off, by Gottfried Leibbrandt and Natasha de Terán
A timely introduction to and accessible survey of payment system developments
Mastercard and Visa dominate card scheme market
Number of operational card schemes ranges from zero to 10
RBI bans Mastercard from taking on new customers
Indian central bank sanctions card issuer over failure to store all payments data locally
Virus impacts consumer credit more than restrictions – Fed paper
“Pandemic itself” was main driver of credit contraction in US, not lockdowns, paper finds
Stress test results affect consumer credit – Philadelphia Fed paper
Banks reduce credit supply after worse-than-expected stress test results, researchers find
Coronavirus panic fuels a surge in cash demand
Covid-19 has led to banknote hoarding in Australia, Brazil, Canada, the eurozone, Russia and the US, fuelled by concerns about financial system stress, write Jonathan Ashworth and Charles Goodhart
PBoC opens local currency payments market to first foreign company
Central bank issues clearing licence to Amex in step towards opening up one of world’s biggest bank card markets
Bank of Portugal removes limits on credit card use
Central bank issues new regulation to encourage the use of electronic payments