Occasionally I will be asked why we work with NFL players to promote financial literacy. In addition to the obvious tie to our Financial Football game, the reality is that this is an issue everyone agrees is important but yet it so rarely rises to the level of garnering mainstream attention. Football players can cut through the din of information barrage we subject ourselves to and get that elusive attention.

So we partner with thoughtful athletes like Matt Stafford of the Detroit Lions and London Fletcher of the Washignton Redskins who recognize the crucial need to help Americans of all ages learn more about sound money management. They harness their own celebrity to demistify a subject that has far too many of us scared into inaction.

And yesterday Messrs. Stafford and Fletcher went to the White House to speak at the Financial Capability and Empowerment Summit. We were invited to showcase the Financial Football game at the White House Summit, a true honor, and asked Fletcher and Stafford to join us. The fact the Administration is even holding such a Summit is genuinely impressive and the day’s focus on delivering tangible results made it all the more impactful.

Before their White House appearance, Fletcher and Stafford took time to visit the Pentagon, where, with Rep. Gary Peters and Navy Federal Credit Union, they spoke to a group of our troops about financial education.

When they talk about financial literacy, Fletcher and Stafford do no preach from on high. Like all of us they have made mistakes with money.  But unlike most of us, they were willing to subjugate their pride and talk about it openly with others, sharing with both the financial and political titans gathered at the White House, as well as with the enlisted men and women at the Pentagon.

It is selfless acts like this that makes them perfect ambassadors for financial literacy.

As the mobile financial services community celebrates 10 years of banking the unbanked, we wanted to take a moment at Visa to recognize the progress that has been made. In 10 years, 100 million people have been newly “banked” using mobile technology. That forecast is expected to double over the next two years.

Celpay International now provides mobile financial services to consumers and corporate customers. Since its launch, Celpay has processed in excess of $2 billion in mobile payments, expanded into Zimbabwe and Uganda, and counts global brands such as SABMiller, Total and BP as customers.

Those numbers underscore the importance of the work Visa is doing in developing economies to expand the opportunities mobile offers. Visa and Fundamo now offer consumers new payment types and services that are secure and interoperable with existing closed-loop mobile money services. New payment types included global and domestic remittances, eCommerce purchases, and ATM withdrawals.

Most importantly, today’s milestone gives us the chance not only to look back on successes, but also forward to the opportunities ahead. Today, 2.5 billion adults lack access to formal financial services, and have to piece together an array of costly, risky, and inconvenient cash-based options.

While the last 10 years have seen tremendous progress, our hope is that 10 years from today we’ll celebrate even greater momentum.

While there are many new players in the payments space, Visa is a trusted brand around the world for the security, reliability and convenience that come with Visa’s 50 years of experience creating one of the largest payments networks in the world – capable of processing up to 20,000 transaction messages per second. We think we do the hard part better than anyone else – and our reputation is proof of that.

V.me by Visa is our new service designed to take the friction out of commerce wherever consumers shop – online today, and soon via mobile device or at a retail store.  Click a mouse, touch a mobile browser, or wave at the point of sale to access any major payment network account – V.me will deliver the simplicity and personalization promised by Internet and mobile payment technologies in ways consumers can trust.

Over the last several months, we’ve launched the V.me website, the V.me Developer Center and have internally tested the service with employees.  We have now reached another milestone with the beta launch of V.me with our first online merchant as we move toward the commercialization of V.me in the United States.

In the U.S., V.me is now available in beta for consumer enrollment and online merchant checkout at Rakuten Buy.com, a leading retail marketplace with more than 18 million customers. The V.me acceptance mark is now visible on the Rakuten Buy.com login/checkout pages allowing consumers to enroll Visa and non-Visa accounts in V.me and make online payments with a simple username and password through the merchant’s website.  Users can also set personalized alerts to receive near-real-time notification of transactions on enrolled Visa accounts.

While our focus is currently on the U.S., we are also working on plans for how to scale V.me in additional countries around the globe to ensure that the V.me experience meets Visa’s standards for security, convenience and reliability as it becomes more broadly available.

In the coming weeks and months, we’ll be adding more top eCommerce merchants that will accept V.me.  Rakuten Buy.com is the first of a group of merchants that will trial enrollment and online capabilities for V.me as we focus on building acceptance among the top eCommerce retailers.  This will ensure that consumers who sign up will be able to use V.me at their favorite places to shop.

Regardless of where a consumer signs up, their information is entered and stored on Visa’s secure servers; they can add Visa and non-Visa accounts from any issuer; and use V.me at any merchant that accepts V.me.

We’re excited about the role V.me will play to strengthen the entire commerce ecosystem, making it easier for consumers, merchants and financial institutions to do business with one another.

Visa is always looking for ways to help our merchant and financial institution partners to better serve their customers and grow their respective businesses. Today, we announced two changes designed to do just that.

First, starting in October, we are raising the Visa Easy Payment Service “no signature required” transaction limit to $50 for discount stores and grocery stores.[1] That’s twice the current limit of $25 that will continue to apply to the majority of merchant categories. The higher transaction limit will help discount stores and grocery stores to be even more efficient, as well as speed up the checkout process by letting consumers use their cards without needing to sign or enter a PIN. And these merchants won’t be required to issue a receipt on these transactions unless the customer asks.

Why is this change important? Because approximately 80 percent of face-to-face Visa consumer transactions in the U.S.are under $50.[2]

As the $50 limit is introduced, Visa will review merchant, cardholder and card issuer feedback and may expand the higher transaction limit to additional merchant categories in the near future.

Secondly, we announced changes to the dispute resolution process, in order to reduce unnecessary chargebacks and documentation requirements and reduce merchant fraud management costs.

Specifically, starting in April 2013, merchants will be protected from fraud chargebacks on transactions that have been electronically read – that is swiped, dipped in or waved past a card reader. Visa will also eliminate the requirement for our card issuers to ask merchants for a copy of the receipt when a cardholder disputes a transaction.

 These changes are designed to promote faster, more efficient dispute resolution for all participants in our payments system.

Today we are excited to unveil Go World, Visa’s Olympic Games-themed integrated marketing campaign for the London 2012 Olympic Games. It is Visa’s most global campaign ever and will be executed in more than 70 countries around the world.

The Go World campaign has always been about the athletes and their incredible stories that inspire the world. It’s a feeling that encapsulates the Olympic spirit – a movement that happens every two years, when for 17 days, the world watches and hopes as one.

This year, with Visa, the world will cheer as one. We are bringing the fans closer to the Olympics than ever before, igniting a cheer that can be heard across the globe. Just as much as we celebrate the athletes who compete in the Games, we want to celebrate the connection that fans have to the moments that define the Olympics Games, inspiring the athletes to do their best with support and cheers harnessed from around the globe.

 The campaign is  social at its core, using Facebook, YouTube  other online content to seamlessly bring fans and athletes from across the world together. In Beijing and Vancouver, it was Visa cheering on the athletes, but this year, we are inviting the entire world to join in the global cheer, and the rallying cry of Go World, harnessing the Olympic spirit from every corner of the globe.

 To bring our campaign to life, we created a new commercial called “The Difference,” which you can watch here. This spot celebrates some of closest and most dramatic finishes in Olympic Games history and reminds viewers that cheering together can propel athletes to greatness.

Visa’s Facebook page is the central hub of the Go World campaign, enabling fans to create, share and view cheers for Team Visa athletes preparing for the Olympic and Paralympic Games. Using Visa’s cheer application, fans will be provided with relevant athlete content based on their likes and preferences, offering a personalized user experience. Fans can also voice their support on Twitter by tweeting their cheers using #VisaGoWorld. We hope that Visa will also enable fans to add “cheering” to a growing list of popular social actions that includes “pinning” and “liking.” For the first-time, Visa will reward fans in the U.S. for participating in the campaign by offering them the chance to have their cheers featured in a special-edition Visa commercials celebrating the achievements of Team Visa athletes during the Olympic Games. And, from May 1 – August 31, 2012, Visa cardholders in the U.S. and Canada will automatically be entered for a chance to win a trip to cheer in-person at the summer sporting events of the Olympic Games for the rest of their lives when they use their Visa card. Official rules, including details on non-purchase entries, are available here.

You can learn more about Visa’s Go World campaign here.

 With less than 90 days to go to London 2012, we encourage you to join our global cheer movement and inspire the more than 60 Team Visa athletes from around the world who are pursuing their lifelong dreams of competing and medaling at the Games.

 Every cheer counts!

 Antonio Lucio

Global Chief Marketing, Strategy and Corporate Development Officer, Visa Inc.

If you’re attending the event, take a minute to tell us what you think about mobile commerce.

Answers to these questions and more were discussed when Visa took part in two key global travel and tourism events last week as part of our ongoing commitment to contributing market intelligence and thought leadership to the global travel and tourism industry.  

Visa’s David Katz speaking to the panel moderator, Peter Greenberg

Ross Jackson, Head of Cross Border for APCEMEA represented Visa at the Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA) General Assembly in Malaysia and David Katz, Head of Government Relations for North Asia, was in Japan for the 12th Global Travel & Tourism Summit, organised by the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC).  

Both events brought together senior level representatives from governments, national tourism bodies, airlines, hotels and large retailers to discuss the future of the industry, especially in terms of tourism recovery efforts when countries are afflicted by either man-made or natural calamities and the reputation issues that dog these countries even when things are pretty much back to business as usual. The positioning of the WTTC event in Sendai was significant in that it was one of the locations most heavily impacted by last year’s earthquake and tsunami tragedy in Japan.

Both events offered Visa the opportunity to share insights and trends based on Visa account holder spending habits, highlighting travel patterns such as the changes in travel both to and within the Asia Pacific.  While there are many indices that help track travel movements, Visa’s unique position as the world’s largest retail electronic payments network, and the insight into travel and spend habits that this network provides, gives unmatched intelligence that help governments and businesses improve product offerings and marketing strategies that can best attract visitors and strengthen their country’s tourism competitiveness

Both Ross and David shared the stage with illustrious representatives from governments and the industry, including the Malaysian Tourism Minister, heads of the Singapore Tourism Board and Tourism Authority of Thailand, the President and CEO of the WTTC as well as noted travelogue producer Peter Greenberg.

For more information on either event, click here or here.

Since 2004, the Millennium Challenge Corporation has been leading the fight against global poverty. As an innovative and independent U.S. development assistance agency, we are changing the conversation on how best to deliver smart assistance by focusing on good policies, country-owned development solutions and results. Our success rests in large part on our ability to forge successful partnerships for sustainable development. This means partnering with countries around the world, civil society, non-governmental organizations, the private sector, and other government agencies.

One lesson we know for sure: Assistance alone is not enough. What will be enough to tip the scale toward sustainable growth is the innovation and investment driven by the private sector. The private sector creates jobs and new products. The private sector is where entrepreneurs are born and thrive. And, the growth, investment, trade, and business generated by the private sector will help lift people out of poverty.

Today, the Millennium Challenge Corporation convenes our first Forum on Global Development. This will be a unique occasion for visionaries and practitioners in international development to meet, exchange ideas and honor three outstanding awardees for their work on gender integration, investment and innovation.

On behalf of MCC, I am proud that we will recognize Visa as the recipient of our first Corporate Award for demonstrating exemplary commitment to eradicating poverty in the developing world. We are impressed with Visa’s commitment to advancing financial inclusion by leveraging its core business along with innovation, strategic partnerships and financial literacy. We applaud Visa’s public-private partnership with the Government of Rwanda, including the extensive Charter of Collaboration as well as partnerships with organizations such as Women’s World Banking and GSMA mWomen, to advance financial access for women and their efforts to bring financial literacy education to millions of people worldwide.

In the global fight against financial exclusion and poverty, no single organization has all the answers. But through innovative solutions from—and partnerships among—governments, the private sector and civil society, we are making a difference.

The Millennium Challenge Corporation funds country-led solutions for reducing poverty through sustainable economic growth. 

U.S. Deputy Treasury Secretary Neal Wolin presents Visa with the Millennium Challenge Corporation’s Corporate Award

The 2011 GEAR study measures the extent to which governments in 62 countries provide e-payment services and the underlying factors that affect government e-payments adoption. It builds on an initial study conducted in 2007 with new findings that highlight the diversity of government e-payment systems already in place, as well as the abundance of opportunities available to government for improving e-payment services for citizens and businesses.

Bottom line – e-payments adoption by governments is on the rise, and infrastructure and security measures are improving to better support these programs.

Governments use e-payments in a range of ways. From disbursing benefits to citizens so they receive timely, secure access to their funds, to establishing purchasing card programs that help streamline paper-based processes, prevent fraud and drive compliance, e-payments are enabling governments to enjoy greater efficiencies and reduce costs.

The following video highlights some of the topline findings:

The study notes – and Visa knows well from our experience – that there is no one-size fits all solution for governments.  Visa’s global network can provide tailored programs across disbursements, procurement, and acceptance.

Partnering with our clients to collaborate with governments supports Visa’s mission to be best way to pay and be paid for everyone, everywhere, regardless of location and income. Today, there are more than 5,000 Visa government programs in 47 countries around the world.

For example, in emerging markets, Visa provides payment options that increase transparency and support financial inclusion, such as the use of Solidaridad Visa Prepaid cards to disburse subsidies in the Dominican Republic. These programs empower citizens – who often live in unstable environments – with a secure, reliable and convenient way to purchase goods and make and accept payments.

In developed markets, such as with a statewide benefit distribution program in Nebraska, Visa programs help government agencies strategically manage and optimize the use of technology infrastructure to streamline costs and overall efficiency while getting funds to benefit recipients in a timely, convenient and secure manner.

In another example, the government of Western Australia has gained operational efficiencies and cost savings using digital currency for procurement and travel.

Visa partners with its clients to help governments around the world transition to electronic payments, increasing efficiencies, promoting financial inclusion and facilitating economic growth.  The results of EIU’s research highlight how governments use e-payments today – and how we can partner with clients to deliver products and services that address challenges governments may face.  To learn more about Visa’s government solutions, visit http://www.visagovernmentsolutions.com/.

• The results of the 2012 Global Financial Literacy Barometer from Visa and Kiplinger’s Personal Finance Magazine. The barometer assesses and ranks the financial literacy levels of people in 28 nations.
• The release of Visa’s new, free, comprehensive personal finance high school curriculum called the “Practical Money Skills Course,” which covers subjects such as budgeting, saving, loans, insurance and more.
• A panel presentation on original financial education research that explored ways financial knowledge and behavior can be improved.

To view the full Summit online, visit www.practicalmoneyskills.com/summit2012.