AmEx Buys Online Fraud Prevention Firm
NEW YORK (
) --
American Express
(AXP) - Get Report
agreed to acquire
Accertify
, an online fraud prevention firm, for $150 million.
Accertify, based in Itasca, Ill., provides solutions that will help merchants combat fraudulent transactions online and at other so-called card-not-present transactions, according to a press release. The three-year-old company provides a "hosted software application" that offers extra security for transactions over any of the major payment networks, including American Express,
Visa
(V) - Get Report
,
MasterCard
(MA) - Get Report
,
Discover
(DFS) - Get Report
,
PayPal
and other alternative payment methods.
While AmEx currently provides other fraud prevention tools, the acquisition of Accertify will expand its offerings to merchants by being able to provide fraud prevention to merchants for transactions on all networks.
"Merchants are interested in fraud tools that cover every aspect of the payment process; and we're pleased that we will now be able to deliver an industry-leading solution to them," said Bill Glenn, president of American Express' Global Merchant Services.
"While we already provide innovative fraud services for American Express transactions, merchants increasingly want single source platforms to address all types of transactions, regardless of the payment brand," Glenn said. "We understand merchants' payment needs on a broader scale, and we're building on our commitment to expand e-commerce solutions and value-added services."
Accertify will become a wholly-owned subsidiary of American Express. The transaction, expected to be completed by the end of the year, will allow the security company to broaden its presence globally and strengthen its platform.
Fraud detection is gaining increasing attention by banks and payment networks as more consumers make transactions online.
U.S. Bancorp
(USB) - Get Report
said on Wednesday that it would implement the
Secure Value Payments
system. The technology is meant to provide business customers and consumers "with the most secure and cost-effective electronic ACH payment available in the market," U.S. Bank said in a release.
"Launching Secure Vault Payments allows U.S. Bank to give our business customers a cost-effective, low risk option to accept online payments, while also offering our consumer banking customers one of the safest ways to pay online," said Jeff Jones, U.S. Bank's executive vice president for treasury management.
Through the program, consumers initiate payments on a merchant or biller's web site and are automatically redirected to their own financial institution's online banking platform to select which account they wish to use for payment. Consumers are then returned to the merchant or biller's site, where they receive a payment confirmation.
American Express shares were most recently rising 2.5% to $43.15. U.S. Bancorp shares were rising 1.2% to $24.34.
To contact the writer of this article, click here:
Laurie Kulikowski
.
To submit a news tip, send an email to:
.
Readers Also Like:
>>Top 10 Mid-Cap Stocks Favored by Analysts
Disclosure: TheStreet's editorial policy prohibits staff editors, reporters and analysts from holding positions in any individual stocks.
