Ecommerce Diary

A diary full of E-commerce stuffs.

Credit card is any card that may be used repeatedly to borrow money or buy products and services on credit. It is issued by banks, savings and loans, retail stores, and other businesses. The credit card debt has become a severe issue and it is the major cause of bankruptcies each year because many people have never realized of its consequences from financial and non financial perspectives.

Causes:
1. Less Income, More Expenses
This is occurs when the breadwinner of the household loses his job but monthly expenses are not cut down hence the income less than expenses and leads to a rise in credit card debt.
2. Poor Money Management
Poor Money Management is the main reason why so many people lead to rise in credit card debt. If don’t have a monthly spending plan and not keeping track of your monthly bills make you unaware of where your money is going. Furthermore if u buys unnecessary items, you might also be charging your necessary purchases on your credit card, forcing you to pay interest on these purchases every month.
3. Big medical expenses
If you need treatment now, but you do not have enough cash to pay the treatment so what do you do? You use your credit card because you do not have enough savings in the bank and almost all the doctors accept credit card payment.
Prevention:
1. Use it Like Cash, Not a Credit Card
You need to use your credit card like cash by paying your balance in full each month.

2. Avoid extra expenses
Sometimes it’s the little extra expenses that sneak up on you before you even know it.

3. Early Education
The best method for prevention is teaching our youngest generation all about money before they even qualify for a credit card. In addition, advertisers market more to younger and younger children, so it’s necessary to teach them very early about the lure of money and how to manage finances. The earlier children learn how to manage finances the less likely they will be to fall into credit card and debt problems as an adult.

References:

http://www.cardratings.com/howtoavoidcreditcarddebt.html

http://www.3debtconsolidation.com/top10-causes.html


What is prepaid cash card? Prepaid cash cards look like credit and debit cards and they offer the same ability to purchase products and services but with a crucial difference – you can only spend the balance that has been preloaded onto the card. This means there is no risk of running into debt as it has no credit or overdraft facility..

With a cash card, those with poor credit or too little money to meet banks’ minimum account balance requirements can participate in the retail transactions most people take for granted: ordering goods online, paying for items with a quick swipe, getting cash on demand from ATMs. Besides that, these cards may be beneficial for consumers who want to avoid the temptation of spending beyond their means, they are no panacea.

When using it, your purchases will be deducted from the balance stored on the card. The user can add more money to the card by paying cash at a retail store's point of sale, or in certain cases from their paycheck. In this sense, these cards have some of the features of a bank account. For those who lack the discipline or the know-how to manage their money, these cards can be a lifesaver in that they don’t let a user spend more than he or she has. It’s impossible to overdraw and accrue fines, or tap into a line of credit that could spiral into a nightmare of debt.

There are many types of Prepaid Card.

Payroll Card
Safer and faster than cash and checks, the Chase Payroll Card Program automates the payroll process by replacing paper-based payments with a reloadable debit card — reducing organizations' operational expenses, minimizing check-related fees and improving security.

Rebate Card
Prepaid rebate cards can help streamline payment processing while reducing paper, minimizing check-related fees and improving security. What's more, the Reward Card can be customized with a brand identity to build awareness, deepen customer loyalty and boost participation in future programs.

Employee Incentive Card
Employers can use the Chase Incentive Card program to increase employee satisfaction, drive revenue, influence consumer behavior, and motivate partners and sales teams. Our solution helps minimize costs and streamline the administration associated with incentive programs. Let Chase help build a memorable, exciting and effective employee rewards program while offering a company benefit that saves employees time and money.

University Card or College Card
With the Chase University Card or Chase College Card program, schools can disburse financial aid refunds, grants, work-study payments, athletic stipends, and payroll electronically to an entire college audience. Best of all, eliminate the hassle and expense of paper checks and manual check processing. Students, faculty and staff can use Chase Prepaid Cards to easily access their Chase accounts at automated teller machines (ATMs) and to make point-of-sale (POS) purchases.

Claim Payment Card
The Chase Claim Payment Card is a cost-effective and unique way for insurers to distribute recurring and single load benefit payments to their policy holders. Along with increasing the use of direct deposit, the Claim Payment Card program gives insurers improved management of funds distribution through increased reporting capability and eliminates the costs associated with the issuance and processing of paper checks.



Related Links:
http://washingtonindependent.com/35944/prepaid-cash-cards-are-a-pricey-way-to-swipe
http://www.moneysupermarket.com/c/prepaid-cards/guide/
http://kioskmarketplace.com/article.php?id=16002

"Every day new technologies are created and improved, one of the latest technologies to emerge means that instead of carrying a wallet with credit cards in to pay for goods and services, you can use your mobile phone number instead..."


Mobile payment is a new payment method that a person can use a mobile phone or other devices to pay for goods and services such as:

•Music, ringtones, wallpaper and other digital goods

•Transportation fare and other services

•Books, magazines, tickets and other hard goods



B
roader usage of mobile phones has encouraged the acceptance and growth of the mobile banking and mobile payment services in Malaysia. The services can be expanded to take advantage of the increasing number of mobile phone users.

In this regard, Bank Negara Malaysia has taken step to encourage the financial institutions to promote their delivery channel in mobile banking. Following the initiative, in facilitating mobile payments development, banking institutions are partnering with third party service providers to provide services to allow subscribers to purchase goods and services or make payments using their mobile phones.

However, existing services are focused mainly on bill payment and m-banking, growing slowly into m-wallet services, remittance and transfer offerings. In addition, there are many other payment methods, such as credit card, ATM card, in Malaysia and are very convenience. Thus, mobile payment system is not likely to replace other existing payment system in the near future.
Nevertheless, mobile payment system in Malaysia is still on its early stage. Future development may advance its system and make it more suitable for Malaysia. Hence, mobile payment system may become a common payment method in the forthcoming.



Following are some strategies used to increase consumer adoption toward mobile payment:

•Tells consumer about the advantages of using mobile payment system
Mobile payments provide consumers with everywhere purchase possibilities, timely access to financial assets and an alternative to cash payments. A person can, for example, pay for transportation tickets without the need to visit a ticketing center.

•Ease of use and convenience
The process of the transaction must convenience and not complex. This is found to be the most significant factor toward the consumers' adoption in mobile payment system.

•Cost of the transaction
The transaction costs of mobile payments should be low enough to make the total cost of the purchase competitive with alternative payment method.

•Payment system security
Company must set up some security measures to ensure the safety of the transaction as well as consumers' personal information. This will enhance the consumers' confidence in mobile payment system and thus boost the consumers' adoption of mobile payment.



Read more:

"The money screamed across the wires, its provenance fading in a maze of electronic transfers, which shifted it, hid it, broke it up into manageable wads which would be withdrawn and redeposited elsewhere, obliterating the trail."

Nest of Vipers, a banking thriller by Linda Davies




Electronic currency, also known as electronic cash or digital money, plays an important role in e-commerce. It is a form of electronic money that can be used to pay for goods and services on the internet or other electronic medium. Basically, electronic currency is intangible and only exists online. It is stored in media such as hard drives. We cannot see or touch it.

There are two forms of electronic currency:

1) Identified e-money

E-money that contains information identifies people who originally withdraw money from bank. The bank can trace the money and reduce financial crime.

2) Anonymous e-money

E-money that is an electronic equivalent or paper cash. It cannot be trace back and its owner can't be identified.

There are two further varieties of e-money:

1) Online e-money

Third party such as bank is required for the transaction. Similar to credit card clearing mechanisms at the point-of-sale in shops.

2) Offline e-money

Third party not required for the transaction. It is the most complex form of e-money.

Examples of electronic currency:


1)Paypal is an e-commerce business that allows users pay and get paid online. A Paypal account can be funded by credit card or bank account transfer. It performs payment processing for online vendors,auction sites, and other commercial users and charges fees. Fees charged are based on currency used, the payment option used, the country of the sender, the country of the recipient, the amount sent and the recipient's account type. PayPal has now become a global leader in online payment solutions with more than 153 million accounts around the world. It is available in 190 markets and 18 currencies. It also enables payments made across different locations, currencies, and languages.



2)Mondex, a smart card electronic cash system which was originally developed by National Westminister Bank in UK. It is a part of the MasterCard WorldWide suite of smart card products which enables cardholders to carry, store and spend cash value using a payment card. Mondex can be used in internet, mobile phone and interactive television. Value is stored as electronic information on a microchip and exchanged securely from the chip on the card to a chip in a terminal/card reader.

3) Chipknip is the electronic cash system used in Netherlands. Smart card included in ATM cards that issued by Dutch bank can be loaded with value via Chipknip loading stations next to ATMs. It can be used for payments at parking machines, public transport, office canteens, and for small retail transactions. Besides, no network access is required. PIN is not required to unlock the value stored on the card. The card is entered into the reader at the point of payment. Card holder can easily confirms the transfer of value.

References:

Electronic money (wikipedia)
E-money-What is it?