Latest news with #VISA
Elle
2 days ago
- Sport
- Elle
'A Huge Boost For The Game' Heroic Lionesses Bring Football Home Again And Change Women's Football Forever
And the Lionesses have done it again. England women's football team were crowned champions of Europe last night in Switzerland once more, winning against Spain in a nail-biting penalty shoot-out at the Women's Euros 2025. Sarina Wiegman's team put in their best performance of the tournament and in doing so retained the UEFA Women's Championship title they won in 2022 at Wembley. There was an electric atmosphere in Basel's St. Jakob-Park despite the summer rain. Both teams looked sharp and focused, but it was reigning world champions Spain who went in front with a header from Mariona Caldentey in the first half. The Lionesses fought back, defending their goal thanks to the resilience of Jess Carter and Lucy Bronze, and stellar saves from goalkeeper Hannah Hampton. Who knows what manager Wiegman said to the team at half time, but they came back with a goal in the 56th minute after a cross from Chloe Kelly and superb header from Alessia Russo. Tension filled the night as the game went to extra time with no more goals scored. And so, we may have only just recovered from those dramatic penalties against Sweden in the quarter finals, but the teams lined up for another shoot-out, this time in front of England's roaring travelling fans. Once more it was Hannah Hampton (who started this tournament as number one goalkeeper for the first time after Mary Earps' retirement) with her penalty 'cheat sheet' homework taped to her arm, who made the title-winning saves. Chloe Kelly put away the penalty that had the whole team running onto the pitch in victory. 'Sweet Caroline' never felt sweeter as the stadium erupted and fans couldn't quite believe what an amazing game it had been. Hampton was later named player of the match, with another new star Michelle Agyemang named best young player. There's no doubt that England's victory will be a boost for women's football, which has seen huge growth in the past decade. The sold-out final, with an attendance of 34,203, rounded off a hugely successful tournament which broke records as the highest-attended Women's Euros in history. Stats from sponsors VISA showed that it's not just viewing figures but also spending power that continues to make an impact and drive economic growth around the game, with the fans of first-time qualifiers Iceland showing the largest increase of overseas spend in Switzerland. As the women's game continues to grow globally it will only attract more and more investment at all levels ahead of the Women's World Cup in Brazil in 2027. When ELLE UK interviewed Hannah Hampton in May she said, 'We want to go and bring the trophy back home if we possibly it's going to be a tough tournament, we know the standard everyone's brought now and countries are just getting stronger and stronger so it'll be tough but we'll go give it our best shot.' They did just that and once more we're celebrating the Lionesses and everything the team show us about grit, determination and never giving up.
The South African
6 days ago
- The South African
Interpol arrests wanted Chinese fugitive in Sandton
The Interpol National Central Bureau (NCB) in Pretoria recorded another success when its extradition team arrested a Chinese fugitive reportedly linked to a fraud case reported in China. The 57-year-old suspect reportedly applied for a VISA at the United States of America embassy in Sandton, Johannesburg when his fugitive status was flagged, leading to his arrest on Tuesday, 22 July. Police spokesperson Lieutenant-Colonel Amanda van Wyk said a preliminary report indicates that Interpol circulated a Red Notice to all member countries to locate and provisionally arrest the Chinese national, as wanted persons often flee to another country to evade their arrest. Van Wyk said the suspect reportedly applied for a VISA at the United States of America embassy in Sandton when his fugitive status was flagged, leading to his arrest on Tuesday, 22 July 2025. 'The suspect made his first appearance in the Randburg Magistrates Court on Wednesday, 23 July,' she said. Earlier this year, Interpol's Operation Red Card resulted in the arrest of 306 individuals across seven African countries. The operation which aimed to dismantle cross-border criminal networks responsible for significant harm to individuals and businesses was conducted between November 2024 and February 2025. It also targeted scams involving mobile banking, investment, and messaging apps, with cases affecting over 5 000 victims. South African law enforcement reportedly played a pivotal role in this crackdown, apprehending 40 suspects and confiscating more than 1 000 SIM cards and 53 computers. These were linked to a sophisticated SIM box fraud scheme where international calls are rerouted as local ones, often facilitating large-scale SMS phishing attacks. Let us know by leaving a comment below, or send a WhatsApp to 060 011 021 1. Subscribe to The South African website's newsletters and follow us on WhatsApp, Facebook, X, and Bluesky for the latest news.
Cision Canada
21-07-2025
- Business
- Cision Canada
Wellcell Holdings (02477.HK) Makes Strategic Move into Crypto Payments - Fopay Poised to Become Hong Kong's Web3 Trailblazer
HONG KONG, July 21, 2025 /CNW/ -- Wellcell Holdings Co., Limited (HK:02477) announced on July 21, 2025 the market launch of its global stablecoin payment platform "Fopay", officially entering the crypto payments sector. The development and introduction of Fopay aims to capitalize on the global growth opportunities in crypto payments, providing both individual and corporate users with secure, efficient, and low-cost digital payment solutions. Regulatory Tailwinds Driving Adoption 2024 witnessed the implementation of key stablecoin regulatory frameworks worldwide – the EU's MiCA establishing issuance standards, the U.S. Stablecoin Act strengthening compliance requirements, and Hong Kong's Stablecoin Ordinance passed in May marking a watershed moment for Asia's market. Against this backdrop, Wellcell's timely launch of Fopay demonstrates strategic acumen and execution capability. As one of the few Hong Kong-listed companies positioned to benefit from the trillion-dollar global stablecoin opportunity, Wellcell's strategic upgrade could emerge as a benchmark case under Hong Kong's new virtual asset policies. JPMorgan research projects the compliant stablecoin payment market to exceed $5 trillion by 2027, growing at a 68% CAGR HKMA forecasts compliant stablecoin payments will account for over 25% of local cross-border settlements by 2025 Regulation-Friendly Architecture Fopay's "compliant prepaid card" model partners with licensed institutions for stablecoin custody while integrating with the VISA network. This innovative approach mitigates asset custody risks while achieving interoperability with traditional finance – giving it significant compliance cost advantages over international competitors in Hong Kong. Solving Cross-Border Payment Pain Points Fopay's value proposition directly addresses three critical challenges in traditional cross-border payments: Fee Disruption: Zero-fee peer-to-peer transfers and remittances, dramatically reducing costs compared to SWIFT Speed Advantage: Crypto cross-border settlements in minutes versus 1-3 business days for traditional banks Global Accessibility: Instant stablecoin-to-fiat conversion through VISA's 60-million merchant network Merchant Solutions: Crypto payment APIs enabling stablecoin settlements for e-commerce and trading companies to enhance capital efficiency Technical Edge Notably, Fopay supports leading high-performance blockchains including Solana, Arbitrum, Ethereum, and BSC, delivering transaction throughput (TPS) orders of magnitude higher than traditional banking systems. This technical superiority creates a moat in high-frequency, low-value payment scenarios like cross-border e-commerce and game top-ups. Shareholder Synergy: Hangfeng International's Strategic Value As Wellcell's largest single shareholder, Hangfeng International is demonstrating remarkable Web3 ecosystem synergies through its "payments + asset management" dual-engine strategy: Fopay's user growth and capital accumulation will drive sustainable AUM expansion for Hangfeng's planned U.S.-listed asset management subsidiary Public filings indicate Hangfeng's asset management platform is preparing to launch regulated digital asset custody and management services, offering institutional-grade solutions to ecosystem partners Strategic Investor Backing Hangfeng International's shareholder base brings together strategic investors from fintech, cross-border trade, and industrial internet sectors. These quality industry partners will collectively develop practical payment application scenarios, creating lasting ecosystem value and business momentum. Market Underappreciation Institutional research suggests this ecosystem synergy remains undervalued by the market. Beyond being a payment instrument, Fopay is transforming into a "super-interface" bridging traditional finance and Web3 – potentially the Web3 infrastructure benchmark that Hong Kong's capital markets have been awaiting. The strategic positioning of Fopay under Wellcell's ecosystem, backed by Hangfeng International's resources, presents a compelling case for being Hong Kong's first truly institutional-grade Web3 payment infrastructure play.
Global News
18-07-2025
- Global News
4 Ontario men wanted in Alberta on allegations of taxi fraud
Arrest warrants have been issued in Alberta for four Ontario men accused of 18 incidents of taxi fraud that allegedly defrauded 16 victims of more than $28,000. Calgary police said they received 19 complaints between July 9 and July 14, 2024, about the alleged offences that appeared to have been committed by an organized group of individuals. The group is accused of using two methods to defraud the victims. In the first, one of the suspects would approach strangers asking for help paying a taxi fare with a debit or credit card, because the driver wouldn't accept cash. The victim would use their card to pay and the suspect would pay them back with cash. In the second method, a suspect driver, who did not have a taxi licence, would accept fares as a normal cab driver would, but they would use a skimming device to steal the victim's personal identification number (PIN). Story continues below advertisement In some cases, the driver would also swap the unsuspecting victim's debit card with another stolen card. Get breaking National news For news impacting Canada and around the world, sign up for breaking news alerts delivered directly to you when they happen. Sign up for breaking National newsletter Sign Up By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy Once the transactions were complete, the scammers would use the victim's card to withdraw money from an automatic teller machine (ATM) or to purchase prepaid VISA or gift cards. Alberta-wide arrest warrants have been issued for four men and released pictures of them to the public (see below). They are, from left to right: 24-year-old Ibrahim Kald, wanted on five counts of credit card theft and three counts of fraud under $5,000; 24-year-old Arvinder Singh, wanted on 17 counts of credit card theft and seven counts of fraud under $5,000; 19-year-old Martin Hudec Siron, wanted on 15 counts of credit card theft and six counts of fraud under $5,000; 24-year-old Matthew Tani, wanted on four counts of theft of a credit card and seven counts of fraud under $5,000. View image in full screen The four men suspected of being involved in the taxi fraud cases are accused of stealing more than $28,000 from 16 victims, between July 9 and July 14, 2024. Calgary Police Police believe the suspects have since left Alberta and returned to Ontario, where they are believed to live. Story continues below advertisement Calgary police are also offering some tips to help people avoid falling victim to this type of fraud. Never hand over your credit card, keep it in your possession; Use secure mobile payment options that offer extra encryption and protection, such as Apple Pay or Google Pay; Always confirm the payment method before the ride begins; Never let your payment card out of your view, keep it in your possession; Don't pay using cash when using ride booking apps; and Be skeptical and if you have a suspicious interaction, contact police and your bank. Calgary police said investigators have also uncovered similar instances of fraud in Edmonton, Toronto and Metro Vancouver.
New Indian Express
18-07-2025
- Politics
- New Indian Express
Odisha hosts good governance meet; Centre unveils new farm scheme targeting 100 districts
BHUBANESWAR: Union minister of state (independent charge) for Science and Technology, Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions Dr Jitendra Singh on Thursday said the Centre would soon roll out a new scheme focusing exclusively on agriculture and allied sectors in 100 districts across the country. Addressing the two-day national conference on good governance here, Dr Singh said, the first-of-its-kind Prime Minister Dhan-Dhaanya Krishi Yojana (PM-DDKY) draws inspiration from NITI Aayog's aspirational district programme and aims at enhancing adoption of crop diversification and sustainable agricultural practices, augment post-harvest storage at the panchayats and blocks. 'Like the aspirational district programme, 100 districts will be identified based on three key indicators of low productivity, low cropping intensity and less credit disbursement. A district plan will be finalised with progressive farmers as members. Committees will be formed at district, state and national level for effective planning, implementation and monitoring,' he said. The Union minister elaborated critical dimensions of Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led reforms in governance and termed them as revolutionary, breaking away from outdated practices and challenging long-held conventions. 'Several initiatives such as the centralised public grievance redress and monitoring system and digital life certificate have evolved into global models of innovative governance. Most importantly, India's Unified Payments Interface (UPI), which has now surpassed global payment systems like VISA in terms of usage,' he said. Dr Singh said a key hallmark of the Modi administration has been its decisive departure from the 'status quo' approach of the past. 'As a result, over 1,600 obsolete and archaic laws have been repealed, significantly reducing administrative burdens and promoting greater efficiency and transparency in governance,' he added. Speaking on the occasion, Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi said good governance is not the prerogative of a few, but the right of every citizen and the solemn duty of every public servant.
