JPMorgan intros online billing platform

JPMorgan Chase & Co is betting it can capture market share from credit-card issuers including American Express by helping consumers better manage their debt, reports Bloomberg.

The lender has rolled out Chase Blueprint, an online billing platform that allows 20 million card holders to finance certain purchases while paying others in full each month interest-free.

Customers then choose the number of monthly instalments, and Blueprint calculates the interest they can save by paying more than the monthly minimum. “For us, this is about wallet share and loyalty,” said Bill Wallace, president of card services for New York-based JPMorgan.

The current decal programme for the I-15 Express Lanes in Salt Lake City, US, will be replaced by an electronic payment system by the end of next year, says KSL.com.

The decal programme, which allows 1 600 drivers to pay $50 a month to use the Express Lanes was only temporary, according to the Federal Highway Administration.

The administration has authorised TransCore to construct the electronic payment system which will allow for better traffic management on the highway and is expected to encourage carpooling.

Canada's wireless carriers are lagging behind their major US counterparts when it comes to being green, especially in terms of energy-efficient mobile phone networks, states The Canadian Press.

Telus has disclosed its energy and carbon footprint and is driving its e-billing initiative. The company also says it recycled more than 86 000 phones in 2008, which was above its original goal.

Global research firm ABI Research ranked AT&T Wireless as the greenest mobile network operator, followed by its American counterparts Sprint Nextel and Verizon in second and third place.