Payment Cards: a Good Deal or the next Busted Flush?

Next week, the Financial Services Club UK is meeting on Tuesday 3rd March 2009 with John Chaplin, European Payments Adviser to First Data, as our keynote speaker.

Register as a member or non-member.

John's chosen the provocative title: "Payment Cards: a Good Deal or the next Busted Flush?"

As transaction banking is propelled higher up the banking popularity league tables, payment cards are seen as one of the most profitable activities for retail financial institutions and, despite the market downturn, most markets are still seeing healthy overall growth in plastic card usage.  But the industry is under enormous pressure both from within and from the key external stakeholders – the regulators and the retailers.

Could the house of cards be starting to wobble or will plastic become even more important as a driver of bank profits in the future?

In a market in which spin plays a much more significant role than in other areas of retail payments, it is not always easy to understand what is really going on.
John Chaplin of First Data will go behind the hype and look at the major trends and developments in cards both in Europe and globally, and give his views on where the industry is headed:

• Demutualisation of card schemes..…impacts so far and the next moves
• Changing industry economics…..interchange, assessment fees, surcharging, debit vs credit
• Key trends…..volumes for different card types (how is the economic storm impacting the business), fraud following chip + PIN, credit charge-offs
• Where is the innovation coming from?……contactless, mobile, pre-paid, virtual etc
• Politics affecting the business?.......SEPA, Central Bank/regulatory oversight, impacts of bank bailouts

John Chaplin is European payments adviser for First Data and liaises closely with the European Commission, European Union and other regulatory authorities leading First Data's activities in support of banks as they seek to address the challenges and opportunities that SEPA will bring.

Mr Chaplin has extensive experience of the European payments business having held senior executive roles at Visa Europe over 17 years, including assignments as Head of strategy and Chief information officer.

Latterly, he was Executive vice president of Visa's processing business in Europe, providing services to 6,000 banks and also serving as a member of the executive management board.

If you wish to come please register as a Club member or non-member.

There is also time to still register and attend tomorrow's meeting in Dublin of the FSClub Ireland if interested:

How Europe's infrastructural changes impact Ireland

Or Thursday's meeting in London:

Equities exchanges and low latency