As Finextra pulls the shutters down on 2012, we take a look back at our most popular news stories, videos, features and blogs over the course of the past year. The site will re-open for business on 2 January 2013.
Top news stories of 2012
January
Wells Fargo puts mobile banking apps on Kindle Fire tablets
US bank Wells Fargo has added its Android application to the Amazon Appstore, making it available to Kindle Fire users.
February
Barclays launches mobile number-based P2P payments service
Barclays has launched a person-to-person payments service that enables Brits to send and receive money using mobile phone numbers.
March
AXA opens API store for developer community
AXA Banque of France is inviting developers to pitch for a EUR50,000 grand prize at the launch of a new open API platform providing secure access to account and payment data.
April
Wincor Nixdorf to lay off 500 staff and shift production overseas as profits slump
German banking systems company Wincor Nixdorf is to lay off 500 staff and shift manufacturing to cheaper Asian markets after reporting a 50% drop in profit for the first half of the year.
May
Hackers demand EUR250K 'idiot tax' from Dexia in return for stolen customer data
A group claiming to have hacked a Dexia Bank subsidiary's database is threatening to post sensitive customer information unless it receives an "idiot tax" of EUR150,000 by Friday.
June
Microsoft unveils mobile wallet with SIM-based NFC
Tech giant Microsoft has made its mobile money move, adding a digital wallet and SIM-based NFC to its latest operating system, Windows Phone 8.
July
Google working with banks to test new Wallet APIs; UK launch rumoured
Google says it is working with a number of undisclosed bank partners in a programme to streamline the clumsy card onboarding process for its stuttering mobile wallet service.
August
Google Wallet moves to the cloud to support all credit and debit cards
Google is bidding to breathe new life into its stuttering mobile wallet platform by launching a cloud-based version of the app that can be linked to Visa, American Express and Discover cards.
September
ING to open API developer portal
Dutch bank ING is building a software development kit with open APIs in an effort to tap into the creativity of third party developers.
October
Under fire MasterCard bids to smooth over data privacy fears
MasterCard has moved to soothe consumer privacy fears following a rash of headlines about its plans to sell card transaction data to large retailers and corporations.
November
Worldwide mobile payments volume to hit $1 trillion by 2017 - IDC
More than a trillion dollars will be spent around the world using mobile devices by 2017, according to IDC Financial Insights, although this will still represent only a drop in the commerce ocean.
December
London buses to start accepting contactless bank cards
From Thursday, Londoners will be able to pay for some bus journeys using their contactless bank cards.
Videos
What’s next for mobile payments?
Bloomberg launches App Portal
Social networks and media channels
Update on FIN Renewal
Are we ready for T+2?
Features
The Truth about T+2
The FSA, Commerzbank & IBM discuss cyber-terrorism, Occupy & how banks are preparing for London 2012
Trends in High Performance Trading and FIX Messaging
It pays to innovate
Shutting the door on cybercrime
Blogs
Google Wallet is losing money on EVERY transaction
Big Data Use Cases
The Euro Crisis and Supply Chain Finance
Mobile banking trends in 2012
Forget the NFC argument - look at payments behavior