LONDON–(BUSINESSWIRE)–

Virtual credit card for travel management companies is industry first

Sabre Travel Network has chosen the UK market to launch technology that
will simplify payment processes for travel management companies (TMCs).

Sabre’s Travel Settlement Services is available to UK TMCs and is
powered by Conferma, the provider of travel and expense (TE) booking,
settlement and reconciliation solutions.

Currently, UK-based intermediaries book their clients’ hotels using the
credit card stored in the traveller profile.

Consequently, guarantees and payment settlement must be performed
manually through a multi-step, time-consuming process.

With Sabre’s Travel Settlement Services, a virtual-credit card is
created at the time of booking and is automatically sent to the supplier
to guarantee the reservation.

At check-out, the virtual credit card is charged, and Travel Settlement
Services automatically reconciles the booking to the payment.

The virtual credit card securely automates global supplier payment and
reconciliation processes, bringing together the travel and payment
transaction at the point of sale with a slick and easy-to-use system.

TMCs will save valuable time and money on manual payment processes, such
as the hotel bill-back payment scheme, and decrease their vulnerability
to fraud.

Key benefits include:

• Enables access to multiple payment and card partners
• Provides visibility of total spend
• Ensures travel policy compliance
• Eliminates risk of payment card fraud
• Increases productivity and reduces costs by replacing the manual,
  time-consuming processes with an automated, paperless process
• Accelerates billing and collections by simplifying the client invoice
  process
• Enhances data management capabilities by providing online transaction
  reporting that links payments directly to specific bookings

Harald Eisenaecher, Sabre Travel Network’s senior vice president for
Europe, the Middle East and Africa, said, “Virtual payments eliminate
expensive and time-consuming, labour-intensive reconciliation processes
within the TMC.

“It will put an end to hotel bill-back, and minimise agency credit and
fraud risk. The technology will save agencies time and money, allowing
them to focus on servicing their travellers.”

Simon Baker, chief executive of Conferma, said, “Travel Settlement
Services will enable more TMCs to benefit from our growing network of
world-class banking partners and our acclaimed virtual card delivery,
reconciliation and settlement technology.”

Travel Settlement Services is a fully-automated process in the Sabre Red
Workspace and is fully PCI compliant.

The UK market is the first to benefit from the virtual payment
technology. The service will be rolled out in other global markets
throughout the year.

About Sabre Travel Network

Sabre Travel Network provides technology solutions to the global travel
industry. It operates the world’s largest travel marketplace, connecting
travel buyers and sellers through the Sabre global distribution system
(GDS). Its innovative software connects more than 350,000 travel
professionals to more than 400 airlines, 93,000 hotels, 25 car rental
brands, 50 rail providers, 13 cruise lines and other global travel
suppliers. More than 300 million people purchase airline tickets through
this channel annually.

Sabre Travel Network is part of Sabre Holdings, a global travel
technology company serving the world’s largest industry- travel and
tourism. Its innovative technology is used by more than a billion people
around the world to plan, book and get to their destination at a time
and price that’s right for them. For more information, please visit: www.sabre.com.

About Conferma

Conferma is an expert in travel and expense booking, reconciliation and
settlement technology. The booking, payment and reconciliation
technology which Conferma delivers enables process improvement,
innovation and secure payment management, all of which drive cost
savings and efficiency. Conferma first launched its settlement platform
in 2004 and is privately owned.

Contact

Sabre Holdings
Martin Ferguson, +44 20 8538 8576
Mob: +44 7740
409 440
martin.ferguson@sabre.com
or
For
Conferma:
Brown PR
Sally Brown, + 44 (0) 208 871 0536 / + 44
(0) 7917 091782
sally@brownpr.co.uk

Article source: http://uk.finance.yahoo.com/news/sabre-launches-travel-settlement-services-162500021.html

More Americans searched for credit in late 2011, according to the Federal Reserve, but most banks didn’t make it any easier on them to get it — whether they wanted a new card or just a bigger credit limit.

According to the Federal Reserve’s latest survey of senior loan officers , a small number of banks are making it easier for more customers to get new credit cards. However, most banks are leaving their lending standards alone and some are even tightening their offers for new and existing customers.

“They’re being very selective about who they offer credit to,” says Dennis Moroney, research director in the bank cards division with advisory services firm TowerGroup.

Every quarter, the Federal Reserve polls loan officers across the country and asks them for a three-month snapshot of what lending was like at their bank. According to the Fed’s latest report, released Monday, 15.5 percent of lenders reported seeing a moderate uptick in demand for new cards. Many of those applicants — particularly those with lower credit scores — likely had a hard time getting approved for the card they wanted. 

According to the report, only 14 percent of loan officers reported that their banks made it easier for consumers with less than stellar credit to qualify for a new credit card. None of the 37 officers surveyed, however, said they eased lending standards substantially and 2.3 percent of loan officers said they tightened their standards somewhat.

Meanwhile, current credit card holders saw their credit limits get trimmed, with 5.4 percent of loan officers reporting that they cut credit limits for new and existing customers. A slightly larger number — 8.1 percent of loan officers — said they made it somewhat easier to get a higher credit line. But the vast majority — 86 percent of loan officers — said they kept their credit limit standards the same.

Banks still leery of lending too freely
Lenders’ reluctance to extend a hefty amount of credit to cardholders with less than perfect credit histories is nothing new. After the economy nosedived in 2008, banks across the country made substantial changes to their credit card lending practices. Some of those changes included cutting customers’ credit limits, jacking interest rates and raising the bar for new applicants.

It wasn’t until 2010 that banks began to loosen their grip on lending. However, the majority of banks across the country are still slow to make big changes to how much credit they’re willing to extend.

Dianne Velez of New Jersey is a good example of what’s happening on the ground. She says her credit limit was cut substantially after she racked up a significant amount of debt on her cards. “I had an $8,000 credit limit and at the end of it, I had a credit limit of about $600 bucks.” Velez says that as she continued to pay down her card balance, her credit limit kept getting cut. She responded by canceling all her cards except for one and didn’t apply for a new card until the end of 2011. Her new card has a significantly lower interest rate and better terms. But her APR is still at 21 percent, which is significantly higher than the national average, according to the CreditCards.com Weekly Rate Report.

A mixed bag for cardholders
Many cardholders with imperfect scores, like Velez, appear to be getting slightly better credit card offers than before and are finding it easier to get approved. But their terms are still tight.           

For example:

• 5.4 percent of banks reported lowering the minimum credit score needed to get a new card. And 2.7 percent said they were more lenient toward customers who didn’t quite meet their credit score threshold. However, more than 90 percent of lenders said they left their credit score requirements alone.
• Most banks also left interest rates alone in the last three months of 2011 as well. Just 5.4 percent of lenders said they raised interest rates, while only 2.7 percent lowered them.
• One lender from a small bank reported significantly lowering the minimum amount cardholders have to pay on their credit card bills and a lender from a large bank said it raised the minimum amount due. However, most lenders kept their payment amounts alone.

Experts say that banks will continue to remain cautious until they have more certainty about the economy and about legislative changes going forward. Banks’ bottom lines were trimmed significantly after new regulations from the Credit CARD Act of 2009 and the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act went into effect and experts say banks are still trying to adapt to the changes.

“Banks are still jittery,” says Moroney. “There’s still a lot of legislation that hasn’t been enacted.” 

And as long as banks are uncertain about how much risk they can afford to take on, they’re unlikely to extend a substantial amount of credit to cardholders with riskier credit scores, says D. Anthony Plath, a professor of economics at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. “The tone of the regulators hasn’t changed at all,” says Plath. “The regulators are still being really careful in scrutinizing” the types of credit cards offered to consumers. So banks are “still being really careful.”

Optimistic about 2012
That said, banks are more optimistic than they were before. Occasionally, the Federal Reserve asks lenders special, one-time-only questions about lending and this time they asked lenders what they expect credit quality to look like in 2012. More than one in five (21.6 percent) said they expect credit card loan quality to improve — meaning they expect fewer cardholders will fail to pay their bills. Only 5.4 expect loan quality to deteriorate.

That perspective falls in line with what experts are seeing. “When I’m talking to people, they’re very optimistic. They’re lending more.” says Moroney.

Once the dust settles on the economy and on regulatory changes, consumers could see better offers in the future. “The issuers are being more aggressive in who they’re sending offers to and they’re getting to that riskier score band that has a higher response rate but also a little higher risk,” adds Moroney. 

However, adds Plath, “As we realize the economy is really not that strong, I think it’s going to be a slow careful market for credit cards.”

• Americans want more credit, but banks remain leery, Fed says
• Rate survey: Credit card APRs unchanged for 2nd straight week
• Fed to leave interest rates unchanged until at least 2014

Article source: http://finance.yahoo.com/news/americans-want-more-credit-banks-210000319.html

Thanks to higher production costs in China, parents will be paying more than ever for a slew of popular Mattel toys, Reuters reports.

That probably won’t stop your tots from kicking and screaming over the latest Barbie Dream House, but before you cave and whip out that credit card, you might want to take a timeout. 

Just about every major retailer offers some sort of credit card today as a way to pump discounts to shoppers and help drive up sales.

In fact, Toys “R” Us just announced today that it’s ditching JP Morgan Chase and starting a new branded credit card business backed by GE Capital Retail Bank.

The new Toys “R” Us cards won’t be available to shoppers until this summer, but it’s kicking up a bit of debate at Your Money about whether it’s a smart idea to go for so-called “co-branded” credit cards. (See the worst credit cards on the market right now.)

They’re not quite like the regular crop of department store cards out there, which you sign up for in-store and pay through the company itself. Co-branded cards are usually backed by a major bank that agrees to create a special card with rewards offerings directly targeted toward driving sales back to the retailer.

Translation: They’re basically a handy little tool used to meet their bottom line. 

For that reason specifically, credit card comparison site Nerdwallet cautions consumers against signing up for branded cards. 

“Store credit cards are almost never a good value,” Nerdwallet VP Anisha Sekar told Your Money. “Usually, they’ll give 2-3% rewards at their own store, plus 1% elsewhere. Such a narrow bonus category is significantly limiting–not to mention that you often receive rewards in the form of a gift card that can only be used in-store.”

We wanted to see how Toys “R” Us card’s terms stacked up, but a spokesperson hadn’t yet returned a request for information on on the terms of their new card. As backup, we checked this review from Creditforum.com, which examined the fine print. 

The toy store’s current card charges a variable interest rate (key word: variable) ranging between 15.24 percent and 19.24 percent. Just like Sekar said, the store rewards customers four points for every dollar they spend in-store, but only one point for eligible purchases made elsewhere.

For every $250 you spend (1,000 points), you’re treated to a $10 coupon to be used in-store BUT you’re limited to only three per month.

With an interest rate that high and the incentive to spend in order to “save” at the store, it doesn’t sound like the best deal to us. That is unless you have cause to pick up a few truckloads of Barbies every month.

Sekar agrees: “Unless you spend a disproportionate amount of your budget at that store —let’s say 25% or more, unusual with Toys “R” Us—you’re better off with an all-purpose rewards card that gives more than 1% back on all purchases, or on one that gives rewards on a broad variety of purchases: department stores, say, instead of just at one store.”

DON’T MISS: The Best Rewards Credit Cards For Road Warriors

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Article source: http://finance.yahoo.com/news/just-because-youre-big-kid-181500645.html

INDIANAPOLIS, Jan. 31, 2012 /PRNewswire/ – Football fans will be able to receive the ultimate reward – tickets to Super Bowl XLVI as part of a promotion offered by the NFL Extra Points Credit Card.

NFL Extra Points Rewards Pass street teams will roam various locations throughout the Greater Indianapolis area Feb. 1-4, handing out free NFL Extra Points Rewards Pass credentials and awarding NFL prizes to consumers.  Fans will be encouraged to wear NFL Extra Points Rewards Pass credentials throughout Super Bowl week.  Those identified by an NFL Extra Points Prize Patrol team member as wearing an NFL Extra Points Rewards Pass credential will be eligible to win a pair of tickets to Super Bowl XLVI or a $25 NFLShop.com gift card.

Consumers must be 18 or older to participate.  For Official Rules, visit www.extrapointsgiveaway.com.

The NFL Extra Points credit card is issued exclusively by Barclaycard US, the payments business of Barclays in the United States. 

Adam Vinatieri, four-time Super Bowl Champion and Indianapolis Colts placekicker, will ‘kick off’ the NFL Extra Points Challenge Feb. 1 at 3:30pm (EST) at the NFL Experience inside the Indiana Convention Center.  Vinatieri will lace up his cleats for the last time this season to showcase his field goal kicking precision and attempt to award up to one million NFL Extra Points (in form of $10,000 cash donation) to the NFL PLAY 60 Challenge which is dedicated to youth health and fitness.  Vinatieri will attempt to kick three regulation NFL footballs from 25-yards through three designated targets positioned inside a regulation NFL goalpost.  Some 250,000 NFL Extra Points will be awarded to NFL PLAY 60 Challenge for every target Vinatieri hits or a total of one million NFL Extra Points if Vinatieri hits all three targets.

“I’m really looking forward to the challenge,” said Vinatieri.  “I’ve always prided myself on accuracy but this is taking it to a different level.  Anytime I can help kids embrace fitness and football, I’m there.”

Vinatieri will also join the NFL Extra Points Prize Patrol on the streets of Indianapolis later in the week to personally award a pair of Super Bowl XLVI tickets to a lucky NFL Extra Points Rewards Pass recipient.

“As an NFL Extra Points cardholder myself, I’m very excited to be a part of this program – providing opportunities to attend Super Bowl XLVI – and helping support the NFL PLAY 60 Challenge,” Vinatieri said.

The NFL Extra Points Credit Card re-launched in September 2010. The card enables fans to earn points for every dollar spent which may be redeemed for unique once-in-a-lifetime NFL related experiences, game tickets and NFL licensed merchandise as well as saving 20% at NFLShop.com. Exclusively for the Super Bowl, consumers can also earn 20,000 bonus points after their first use.  All 32 NFL team card designs are available for fans to personalize their card with their favorite team.  To learn more or to apply, go to www.NFLExtraPoints.com/superbowl.

About NFL PLAY 60

Designed to tackle childhood obesity, NFL PLAY 60 brings together the NFL’s long-standing commitment to health and wellness with partner organizations like the American Heart Association.  PLAY 60 also is implemented locally, as part of the NFL’s in-school, after-school and team-based programs.  Since the program was launched in 2007, the NFL has committed more than $250 million to youth health and fitness through programming, grants, and media time for public service announcements.  The NFL and its teams have built more than 100 NFL Youth Fitness Zones and organized more than 1,500 PLAY 60 youth events since the campaign launched.  For more information on NFL PLAY 60, please visit www.NFLRUSH.com/play60.

About NATIONAL FOOTBALL LEAGUE PLAYERS INC.

Formed in 1994, National Football League Players Inc. (NFL PLAYERS) is the exclusive licensing and marketing subsidiary of the NFL Players Association. Representing more than 1,800 active and many memorable former NFL players, NFL PLAYERS “takes the helmets off” the players and facilitates the marketing of them as personalities as well as professional athletes. Through a sponsorship agreement between the organization and the NFL, players are integrated into NFL sponsor activation programs. In addition, NFLPlayers.com, the company’s official website, is part of the NFL Internet Network. Each year,

NFL PLAYERS negotiates and facilitates extensive player marketing opportunities for players. NFL PLAYERS activities include retail licensing, corporate sponsorships and promotions, special events, radio and television projects, publishing and Internet. For more information, visit www.NFLPlayers.com.

Article source: http://finance.yahoo.com/news/nfl-extra-points-credit-card-202700661.html

In the race to sign up more and more customers, credit card companies have been promoting the idea that it is more convenient and less socially awkward to swipe a credit card than to pull out cash or write a check. Who wants to feel the burning embarrassment in the checkout line as you bring everything to a screeching halt to write a check or pay with cash?

And now, swiping is on the way out thanks to RFID (radio-frequency identification). Rather than assign you a plastic card with magnetic stripe, credit card companies are moving toward chips programmed with your relevant information. Have a credit card that says “PayPass” on it? Then you have RFID.

RFID is not new. I once worked a security job where I was assigned an ID card that I passed in front of a scanner at every door I entered. The chip in the card was passive, but got its power from the scanner itself when placed near it. Many of us guards learned that we did not even have to pull our cards out of our wallets, but simply wave the entire wallet in front of the scanner.

And, you can see where this is going.

In the old days (i.e. now), credit card thieves might work at a ritzy restaurant for a bit, harvesting card info with a mag stripe reader they could hide in their vest. Trouble with that was that all those cards had one thing in common: they were all used at that restaurant. On the thief’s shift. At his tables. Arrest was quick.

For about $300, you can purchase a cordless RFID scanning device online. It does have to be pretty close to, but not in contact with, a chip in order to power it and read it.

So, imagine: You get into a crowd, start bumping into people’s purses, back pockets, collecting card info with your scanner. Maybe on the subway, where everyone is headed to somewhere else. Your victim base is decentralized. That’s the first step.

Then, you transfer the card info to a cheap mag stripe card. You can buy them in bulk for 30 cents a piece. Hotels and department stores use them all the time. That equipment to do it will set you back another $350. That done, you now have a clone of that person’s credit card.

From there, it’s all up to what manner of crook you want to be. Sell those card clones for $50 each? For a night on the town, that beats Groupon deals. Hook up with the right gangs in a city or overseas buyers online and you could move many of those at a time.

Or, you could swipe them yourself with smartphone accessories straight into an account. Given the right bank, that could work. Fold them into a grander money-laundering scheme?

What if you paid runners a buck apiece to wander subways, concert halls, and other thickly populated areas with your readers tucked away?

Let’s do the math on one simple scenario that does not involve any cohorts, just willing buyers you meet online and $700 in readily-available equipment. Scan 100 RFID chips per day (easy in crowded areas) and you can recoup that investment in your first day’s “work”. After that, $30 worth of blank cards per day nets you $5,000 from your buyers. $25,000 per 5-day work week. Take a couple weeks vacation each year, like normal folk. Clear $1,250,000 your first year grinding.

Beats a job. Beats selling drugs. Do it all yourself out of an apartment.

If you’re crooked.

All this is possible because credit card companies want you to be embarrassed to pay with cash or check. Their commercials show you inconveniencing people in line behind you, then tell you their products are for *your* convenience. They make it easy to swipe, easy to lose track of your spending. Credit and overdraft fees rack up when you are out of touch with your spending.

And now, they make it easier than ever for thieves to steal you money by taking the card-in-my-hands factor out of the equation. Your info is now broadcast, albeit over a short distance.

Pickpocketing was never easier.

Doubt this all would work? It already has.

Article source: http://www.webpronews.com/credit-card-hack-2012-01

<!–TRAVEL TRIP –>

<!–

Sun promo to all prepaid subscribers

–>

SHOPPING for the best travel card in town? Look no further with Citibank PremierMiles Card.

With Citibank PremierMiles Card, earn the most miles for every spend, miles that never expire and miles that are as good as cash. The Citibank PremierMiles Card gives you all these plus the widest selection of more than 50 airlines.

Every P30 spent in the Platinum card and P40 in the Gold card earns you 1 PremierMile that you can accumulate for as long as you wish until it is time to take that vacation you have always wanted.

You can use your miles to redeem a flight, upgrade or companion ticket. You can also use it to pay for your hotel stay, car rental, and cruise package or travel expenses by redeeming 5,000 PremierMiles for every P1,500 charged to your credit card.

Whichever your favorite airline or frequent flyer program is, Citibank PremierMiles has got you covered with the most options. Be it Asia Miles, Executive Club, KrisFlyer, Mabuhay Miles, Royal Orchid Plus or SkyMiles, you can redeem 1 PremierMile for 1 air mile.

“The Citibank PremierMiles Card is the best travel card. It allows you to take that dream vacation or to travel with loved ones faster. We have designed the card to make your travel experience more rewarding – be it for business trips and personal adventures,” related Bea Tan, Credit Payment Products Director of Citibank in the Philippines.

To complete your travel experience, the Citibank PremierMiles Card comes with free accident coverage and inconvenience protection. Use your card to pay for tickets to get a Common Carrier Travel Accident Insurance for coverage of up to P10 million for the Gold card and up to P20 million for the Platinum Card. You also get Travel Inconvenience Protection for missed/delayed/cancelled flights, and delayed/lost luggage.

Take your Citibank PremierMiles Card to enjoy VIP lounge access. By presenting your card, you have complimentary use of the Miascor airport lounge at Ninoy Aquino International Airport Terminal 1 – 24 hours a day, 7 days a week – regardless of the airline or class you fly with.

Last but not the least, as a Citibank cardholder you get access to the best dining deals in over 1,000 locations all over the Philippines and enjoy discounts, freebies, upgrades and other treats at more than 5,000 partner establishments around the world. To know more about the Citibank PremierMiles Card and to apply, visit www.citibank.com.ph or call the 24-Hour CitiPhone at 995-9999.

• Business Insight
• Living

Article source: http://www.malaya.com.ph/02012012/liv3.html

CreditDonkey.com published a new financial education infographic illustrating five tips and strategies for balance transfers in 2012.

Los Angeles, CA (PRWEB) January 31, 2012

While there are many tactics to improve credit, balance transfers are becoming an increasingly popular way to reign in high interest rates. However, reducing outstanding debt is not always as easy as switching cards. CreditDonkey.com released a new financial education infographic with ground rules every consumer should know before they consider a balance transfer.

With 42.3% of American families in credit card debt, outstanding revolving debt at $807.9 billion and the nationwide credit card APRs averaging 12.78%, according to the U.S. Federal Reserve, now is a hot time for card issuers to lure people from their current cards with promotional interest rates as low as zero.

“Balance transfers are a smart financial choice for many consumers, provided they read the agreement’s fine print and are able to pay down their balances before the introductory low interest rate offers expire,” says Charles Tran, founder of CreditDonkey.com, a consumer credit card comparison and education site. “In most cases, balance transfers represent an interest-free loan during the introductory period, but if consumers use that relief to simply continue uncontrolled spending, they will easily get deeper in debt.”

Infographic: http://www.creditdonkey.com/balance-transfer-game.html

Before making a balance transfer, consumers should follow these five tips:

1. Know the Interest Rates: Review the card’s terms and conditions to learn if you will be charged a balance transfer fee. Fees typically range from 3% to 5% of the total balance. Check the length of introductory period and find out the post-introductory-period APR. If you cannot pay off the balance before this expires, your new card might become more costly than the old one.

2. Don’t Take Teaser Rates at Face Value: Determine if the low- or no-interest rate promotion also applies to new purchases. Some companies charge their usual rates on purchases.

3. Know Your Fees: Understand the different fees—balance transfer fees, annual fees, and minimum finance changes. As a result of the new regulations from the Credit CARD Act, credit card companies have raised or added new fees.

4. Be Aware of Changes: Remember that the terms of the credit card can change over time so consumers should stay current on the newest changes.

5. Read Reviews Before Transferring: Today it is easy, and equally important, to compare reviews and benefits of the cards so you can be sure the new card is the right fit for you.

“Until recently, many 0% interest credit cards were limited to short periods such as 12 months,” says Tran, “but now credit card issuers are offering big incentives such as 0% for 21 months to try to get consumers to transfer their balance.”

CreditDonkey.com also offers guidelines on when balance transfers are suitable. Balance transfers are more appropriate for consumers who can pay off the balance before the introductory period ends, control their spending, and those with a good credit score who can secure a better post-introductory interest rate. If a consumer does not meet these criteria, they should think twice before they enter the balance transfer game.

And for consumers already in the balance transfer game, CreditDonkey.com provides five strategies to help stay ahead:

• Don’t be Late: Pay your bills on time to avoid late fees and penalties that can increase the interest rate.

• Pay Down the Balance: Just paying the minimum payment will not resolve your debt problem.
• Separate Your Debts: If you cannot get a low interest credit card on all transactions—such as purchases, balance transfers and cash advances, use separate cards with the most favorable terms for different transactions.
• Make it a Good Ending: A month or two before the introductory period ends, make plans so you are not stuck with a high interest rate you cannot afford. Decide if you should keep this card and the new high rate or begin a new balance transfer.
• Know Your Rights: For other consumer benefits of the new Credit Card Accountability Responsibility and Disclosure Act, visit http://www.federalreserve.gov/consumerinfo/wyntk_credicardrules.htm

“If you ‘play your cards right,’ balance transfers can save you money and consolidate your debt,” says Tran, “but consumers should understand that using them too often can result in a lowered credit score.”

For more information on different credit card balance transfer offers, interest rates and rewards, visit CreditDonkey.com

Media Contact:

Charles Tran

charles(at)creditdonkey(dot)com

###

Charles Tran
CreditDonkey
(866) 586-2488 7024
Email Information

Article source: http://news.yahoo.com/credit-card-balance-transfer-every-consumer-know-110635388.html

TORONTO, Jan 30 (Reuters) – The two giant jars on Randolph Taylor‘s windowsill are filled with shards of credit cards, chopped up by the clients whose staggering indebtedness drove them to the front line of Canada‘s household debt crisis.

“I used to cut them up myself, but then I saw that having them do it themselves was a huge symbolic act,” Taylor said, pulling out a pair of scissors from his desk drawer in the Toronto headquarters of debt counselling agency Credit Canada.

“I tell them this card is the reason they are here. This card is the reason they haven’t been able to sleep.”

The growth of household debt in Canada to levels approaching those seen in the United States before the 2008-2009 crash seems to be keeping a lot of people awake – from central bankers to economists, lenders, real estate agents and the indebted consumers.

Bank of Canada Governor Mark Carney has warned that the ratio of debt to income will rise from the already alarming 153 percent record reached last year, and many think it will approach the landmark 160 percent hit by the United States before the U.S. tipped into crisis more than three years ago.

While Canada has spent the last few years boasting of its escape from the global credit crisis and its quick recovery from recession, both Carney and Finance Minister Jim Flaherty are sounding the alarm on household debt, warning it has become the biggest home-grown risk to the financial system.

“Obviously the biggest concern is taking extreme levels of debt for those who are most vulnerable,” Carney said in mid-January, pointing to a “potentially overvalued” housing market that has roared higher for years, barely pausing when the U.S. market collapsed.

Carney, like central bankers the world over, has dropped official interest rates to historic lows to bolster growth, and suggested borrowing costs will remain low. The fact that his own policy made borrowing so attractive has not lessened his warning that sharp pain may come when rates do rise.

NO U.S.-STYLE MELTDOWN

The constant cry about household debt from Carney and Flaherty has sparked a debate about just how bad the problem is, with most concluding that it is quite worrisome and will end badly – but not as badly as in the United States.

“I am concerned about household debt. I do think ultimately this is going to end in tears, because inevitably rates are going to rise. And when they do rise, I think it is going to be a real shock to people,” said Craig Alexander, chief economist at Toronto-Dominion Bank, Canada’s second-largest lender.

In December, TD estimated the average Canadian home was overvalued by about 10 percent, while others have predicted a 25 percent drop in house prices. That would leave many homeowners underwater, unable to service their debts and risking default.

Still, Alexander said Canada’s more conservative lending culture may spare it from a U.S.-magnitude crisis.

“I don’t think we’ll have a U.S.-style problem … (because) financial institutions have been very prudent lenders, so we don’t have the same systemic risk the United States had.”

The Canadian Bankers Association, which lobbies on behalf of lenders, points out that 68 percent of household debt is residential mortgages – loans that are backed by an asset and increase an individual’s net worth. Twenty percent comes from lines of credit and only 5 percent is credit card debt.

Mortgages are more conservative as well, with next to nothing of a subprime market.

The news on mortgages would be downright rosy except nearly everyone thinks home prices are unsustainably high, particularly in the two largest markets, Toronto and Vancouver.

Eerily reminiscent of the U.S. housing market five years ago, houses are listed mid-week, packed with buyers over a weekend open house, and sold, often with multiple unconditional offers well above the asking price, two days later.

“If a house goes on the market in a good area, it is insane. Anything under C$1 million, the activity at the public open house is nutty,” said Toronto real estate agent Valerie Cowie.

Cowie, who has been in the business for 10 years, estimates that more than 80 percent of homes in the “active market” – priced under about C$1.2 million – get multiple offers these days.

And while it sounds like a good time to be a real estate agent, Cowie said it is hard on both buyers – who must bid wildly higher to win a house – and on sellers, who risk a deal falling through when the bid fails to be appraised at the higher price.

“The day will come when the seller can’t just ask for more, when the buyer won’t pay it. I look forward to that day. I look forward to the day the buyers just say no. No more,” Cowie said.

HOUSING MARKET MAINSTAY

The strength of the housing market is at the crux of the debt story in Canada, where home ownership is above 67 percent.

Prices in major markets have marched higher for a decade, at an often double-digit pace. Housing prices rose 7.2 percent last year while home sales increased 9.5 percent to C$166 billion, according to the Canadian Real Estate Association.

While price increases appear to be cooling, competition to get into the market has spurred new homebuyers to stretch hard before they are priced out altogether.

Debt counsellor Taylor – the one with the scissors – has heard horror stories about unmanageable mortgage debt.

“I’ve seen people whose mortgage and property tax payments, together, eat up more than 70 percent of their net pay. It should never be more than 35 percent,” he said.

With housing eating up income, borrowers turn to credit cards or home-equity line of credit – the Canadian version of the U.S. refinance game – to pay for food and living expenses.

“They are borrowing from Peter to pay Paul,” Taylor said.

Credit cards are not hard to get. Just ask Michael Dynes, a seasonal concrete worker who found himself with C$140,000 in debt spread across 15 credit cards, plus a mortgage on his home in the resort town of Collingwood, 160 km (100 miles) north of Toronto.

“I always had a decent job, and credit was always easy, a little too easy, to get. And it compounds and compounds until you find you are paying more interest than you’re actually earning,” Dynes, 63, recalls of his debt crisis, which came to a head about seven years ago after he bought a boat, upgraded his house and added furniture.

“I think greed takes over, the want to be like everyone else, to have toys and bells and whistles,” he said. “I’m not a drinking man either, nothing like that. I’m just an average person who got way over their head.”

DOMINO EFFECT

Laurie Campbell, executive director at Credit Canada, a nonprofit credit counselling agency that is funded by banks, retailers and other lenders, blames consumers, not lenders, for the credit mess she sees on a daily basis.

“What’s changed in the last 20 years is a ‘buy now, pay later’ mentality – savings have all but disappeared,” said Campbell, a 21-year veteran of the credit counselling business.

“A correction will hurt. There is no doubt in my mind, a correction will end up a landslide. It’s a domino effect,” said Campbell, whose north Toronto counselling office offers advice pamphlets in Spanish, Farsi, Russian, Tagalog and Chinese, as well as a crate of stuffed toys for children to play with while their parents are counselled about the family’s future.

While Canadian unemployment – at 7.5 percent still well below the U.S. rate of 8.5 percent – seems to be holding steady, Campbell believes Canadians are not as well employed as they used to be, with fewer benefits and lower pay.

Real disposable income fell by 0.1 percent during the first three quarters of 2011, as inflation snapped back from the recession more quickly than average wages.

So far, Canadians appear to be managing their growing debt load. Just 0.39 percent of mortgages were in arrears as of late 2011, in line with historic averages. The credit card delinquency rate was 1.05 percent in mid-2011, down from a 2010 peak of 1.34 percent, the Canadian Bankers Association said.

But the risk of higher rates looms – a boogeyman so long delayed that consumers may have stopped believing easy credit will ever end.

The U.S. Federal Reserve recently extended its vow to keep rates low through late 2014, a move expected to keep Canada’s official interest rates low for longer as well.

The prospect of easy money for years to come doesn’t ease Alexander’s concern about Canadian debt levels – it heightens it. Sure, it’s cheap to service debt, but more and more gets piled on as consumers see a 3 percent mortgage as normal.

“Every time I say ‘Be careful, interest rates are going to go up this year,’ we get to the end of the year and they haven’t gone up. And then the next year I say the same thing,” Alexander said.

“I feel an awful lot like the little boy that cried wolf. But I always remind people that the wolf does show up at the end of the story.”

($1=$1.00 Canadian)

(Editing by Janet Guttsman and Rob Wilson)

Article source: http://news.yahoo.com/insight-borrowing-spree-pushes-canadians-edge-debt-cliff-142425019.html

NEW YORK–(BUSINESS WIRE)–

Citi today launched a new visual tracking and account analysis tools for
U.S. credit card customers available through its Citibank for iPad® App,
becoming the first major credit card provider to offer these features.
The milestone builds on the Citibank for iPad App that a January 19,
2012 report by Forrester Research, Inc. said “transforms the digital
banking experience.”

When Citi launched the initial version of its app for iPad in July 2011,
it became the first major U.S. bank to depart from traditional
ledger-style banking and offer graphs and visual representations of
consumer banking accounts and transactions. The upgrade delivers those
same advanced personal finance tools to its more than 20 million credit
card customers. It is the latest example of Citi’s commitment to
providing solutions that make managing finances simpler and easier, and
it is part of Citi’s ongoing evolution as the world’s premier digital
bank.

“Based on the extremely positive feedback about Citibank for iPad from
our bank customers and their extensive use of the app’s unique account
analysis tools, we set out to offer credit card customers that same
advanced access to mobile financial management, and now we have,” said
Tracey Weber, Head of Internet and Mobile Banking, North America
Consumer Banking, Citi. “Citi cardholders can now use the iPad to
analyze their spending habits and compare spending and financial goals
with customizable graphs and charts, and we’re proud to be the first
major credit card provider to offer those kinds of powerful tools. It’s
part of our commitment to provide financial solutions to customers where
and when they want them.”

Industry Standard – Even before the upgrade, the Citibank for
iPad App was already noted as an industry leader. A new report from
independent research firm Forrester Research says, “eBusiness
professionals at retail banks — and other financial institutions —
should pay close attention to what Citibank has done, particularly its
willingness to experiment and try out new ideas in a brand-new channel.”
To read an excerpt of the report, visit:
http://www.forrester.com/rb/Research/case_study_citibanks_tablet_app_transforms_digital/q/id/61183/t/2.

New Way of Banking – The Citibank for iPad App offers a platform
and tools that help users visualize and analyze their accounts and make
it easier for them to manage their finances. The app enables customers
to:

• Plan cash outflows with the help of a unique interactive chart of past
  and future payments and transfers
• Analyze personal spending habits through automatically generated,
  customizable charts of payee spending
• Compare personal spending habits with general consumer data, filtering
  by location, age group, income bracket and purchase category

Access to Resources – The Citibank for iPad App also offers
access to resources and information that help users manage their
financial lives, including direct access to exclusive, continually
updated content from Citi Personal Wealth Management and Women Co., a
service of Citibank.

Real-time customer service – Consumers can also use the app to
reach customer service directly. Citi is the only major U.S. bank to
offer direct access to its Twitter customer support option via its
tablet app.

Consumer banking customers will also see improvements in this upgraded
version of the app, as it enables them to see front-and-back images of
checks. For first-time users, it also includes helpful new tutorials and
a video with an overview of the app’s capabilities. And with this latest
release, users can now also share articles and other app content via
social media and email.

The intuitive user interface already makes it easy for both banking and
card customers to check balances, control their cash flow, pay bills,
transfer funds, access rewards and find nearby Citibank ATMs and
branches, all at the touch of their screen.

With its ability to make the user’s experience more engaging and
dynamic, users are showing a deeper level of engagement with their
finances. More than 77 percent of Citibank for iPad App users visit
three or more screens throughout the app’s Overview, Analyze and Explore
sections during each session.

To Download or Learn More:

• The Citibank for iPad App is available free from the App Store on iPad
  or at www.itunes.com/appstore/.
• View a demo of the Citibank for iPad App on YouTube at: http://citi.us/okRNbo
• To learn more about Citi, please visit www.citi.com.

About Citi

Citi is a leading global financial services company, which has
approximately 200 million customer accounts and does business in more
than 160 countries and jurisdictions. Citi provides consumers,
corporations, governments and institutions with a broad range of
financial products and services, including consumer banking and credit,
corporate and investment banking, securities brokerage, transaction
services, and wealth management. Additional information may be found at www.citigroup.com.

Additional information may be found at www.citigroup.com
| Twitter: @Citi | YouTube: www.youtube.com/citi
| Blog: http://new.citi.com
| Facebook: www.facebook.com/citi
| LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/citi

© 2012 Citigroup Inc. Citibank, N.A., Member FDIC. Citi and Citibank and
Arc Design are registered service marks of Citigroup Inc. iPad and
iTunes are registered trademarks of Apple Inc. App Store is a service
mark of Apple Inc. Content purchased from the iTunes store is for
personal lawful use only. Don’t steal music.

Article source: http://finance.yahoo.com/news/citi-launches-first-account-analysis-130000215.html

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Article source: http://www.theindychannel.com/slideshow/news/30339045/detail.html