MasterCard Is Buying the Core of the British Payments Infrastructure (fortune.com) 27
Mastercard has agreed to purchase a controlling stake in VocalLink, the payments processor that handles most payroll and household bill processing in the UK. The American payment giant will be paying up to $1.14 billion. Fortune reports: According to MasterCard MA, the deal would create "the first true combination of the traditional person-to-merchant cards business with a clearing business." That is, of course, presuming it clears regulatory scrutiny. VocaLink runs Link, the network that provides interoperability between British ATMs, as well as BACS, the clearing house for payments between bank accounts, and Faster Payments, the inter-bank transfer system for Internet and telephone-based payments.FastCompany explains what this could mean for MasterCard users.
It means (Score:2)
It means that if you have a dispute on your credit card they'll take it out of your salary without any commie shit like going through the courts, because disruptive.
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Okay ... this Fine Article is about MasterCard buying a stake in VocalLink. Now, the last line in the summary says "FastCompany explains what this could mean for MasterCard users." However; the link goes to "https://news.fastcompany.com/what-does-paypals-new-deal-with-visa-mean-for-users-4014697" Unless they're using URL steganography, the link is something about paypal and visa users. What gives?
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It is not VocalLink, just VocaLink (VOCA)
Gosh I'm so glad (Score:2)
that cash exists (still).
Brexit loons will call it "investment" (Score:1)
"See, international investors keep investing in the UK, even after we've decided to leave the EU."
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"See, international investors keep investing in the UK, even after we've decided to leave the EU."
Not sure of your angle, and I don't know the ins and outs of British payment systems, but the price of just over a billion dollars makes it appear to be an intriguing investment for MasterCard. Of course if the UK's economy completely tanks it wouldn't look like such a good investment, but if VocalLink is as big as I think it is this sure looks like a bargain from where I sit.
Maybe the prevailing domestic concern (on your side of the pond) is not continued "investment" as much as national assets being sol
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Maybe the prevailing domestic concern (on your side of the pond) is not continued "investment" as much as national assets being sold off, if I'm reading it right?
Considering that the company responsible for the majority of processors worldwide has been British up till now and soon won't be, and considering our experience in the 1980's, I think we might just be a bit justified in having a little concern about this. Imagine Germany or some other US Ally tried to buy Intel or Apple?
Re: Brexit loons will call it "investment" (Score:1)
No,your right,the great British sell off still continues as fast as they can find buyers,arm was flooged off cheaply last week,every single large energy/water supplier is German or French etc etc.
Be a systems doesn't exist in the UK anymore,sold off cheap,and everyone or anything useful moved to America..
No matter what it is,no matter how vital to the national interests of the UK,if someone offers to buy it,our governments and private companies will stick out their fat greedy hands to take their cut of the
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Well, given that the UK hasn't formally requested to leave the EU yet, wouldn't it be funny if Brussels launched an antitrust investigation into the Mastercard deal, as a parting gift?
A new feed for the NSA (Score:4, Informative)
what little they were not getting anyway ... so more of my financial transactions (I am a Brit) will be copied over the pond to the NSA.
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I'm in England, and I've never seen that term before. Maybe it's local?
We do eat a lot of curry though.
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Probably a bogan (En_UK: Chav, En_US: Trailer trash) who proclaims to hate foreigners and "Effnicks" but jets off to Bali twice a year in his singlet (wife beater) for a Bintang fuelled display of douchebaggery. Apparently this makes him "well travelled".
Disclosure: I'm a skip living in pommyland, both nations have pluses and minuses to living and working there..
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what little they were not getting anyway ... so more of my financial transactions (I am a Brit) will be copied over the pond to the NSA.
Make no mistake about it, the NSA has access to damn near everything going on in friendly nations already. Whether through negotiated channels or unsanctioned spying, the NSA knows what goes on in the UK, Germany, France, Canada, and many other countries. When it comes to their stated mission of security, and their failures, the problem is information overload, not a lack of information.
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Hay, this is is taking back control! We now have the freedom to sell our infrastructure off to whoever we like!
All about the information (Score:2)
Dear editors (Score:2)
What does the link at the bottom have to do with the story?
Stop it.