There are a number of base blockchain platforms that are important in the payments sphere, with the three leading players being Bitcoin, Ethereum and Ripple.  These are the base development platforms, rather than a payments service per se, and choosing which to use is intriguing as they all offer something different.  Bearing in mind that a blockchain has to have currency to operate, each has its own.  Ripple has XRP; Ethereum has Ether; and Bitcoin has bitcoins.  Ripple is fairly banks specific, whilst general digital currency start-ups need to choose between bitcoins and ethers.

U.S. Bank has introduced the Safe Debit Account, which offers key benefits of a traditional account without checks or overdraft fees.

Citi Hong Kong today announced that the recipient of Citi Mobile Challenge Asia Pacific “Best Money Manager Solution” award, Mtel, has taken its winning concept to market with the launch of the CreditCheck app in Hong Kong.

Qlik, a leader in visual analytics delivering intuitive solutions for self-service data visualization and guided analytics, today announced the completion of its acquisition by leading private equity investment firm Thoma Bravo, LLC. Under the terms of the merger agreement, Qlik shareholders are entitled to receive $30.50 in cash for each share of Qlik common stock they hold.

Wells Fargo Insurance, part of Wells Fargo & Company, announced today that 27-year industry veteran Mary-Beth Hahn has been named head of its National Risk Management Practice. In her role, Hahn will lead a national team focused on serving the risk management needs of the bank’s commercial and corporate customers. She will lead business strategy, product development, sales and client experience for the practice. Based in Summit, NJ, Hahn will report to Kristine Meuse, head of the National Cross Sell team for Wells Fargo Insurance.

Accenture has entered into an agreement to acquire Redcore, a privately held Australia-based consulting company that specializes in providing identity and access management services (IAM), as well as security services for Cloud, network management, public key infrastructure, cyber defense, applications and the internet of things.

The acquisition is subject to customary closing conditions. Financial terms are not being disclosed.

TSYS announced that Karim Ahmad, a veteran of the financial services and consulting industries, has been named executive vice president of global product and innovation, effective September 6. He will report directly to Pam Joseph, president and chief operating officer of the company.

TPG, a leading global alternative asset firm, announced today that it has named Sanghoon Lee as a Partner at the firm. Lee will be responsible for leading TPG Capital Asia’s investment activities in South Korea, further expanding the firm’s presence in the Asia-Pacific region.

Last year, we saw contactless cards increase the spend limit per transaction from £20 to £30, making it even more convenient and faster for consumers to pay for their shopping. This is not only good news for consumers, who expect varied methods of payments, but for retailers too. The more that customers are encouraged to use electronic payments, the more opportunity retailers will have to collect valuable customer data.

Temenos, the software specialist for banking and finance, today announces that BACB, the London based provider of trade finance and treasury services to Africa and the Middle East, has selected Temenos’ CorporateSuite, which includes Channels and Analytics for Corporates, to replace existing legacy systems.