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The CEO of HSBC, Stuart Gulliver, announced recently that while he’s pleased with the state of the U.S. economy, he feels keeping the card business in the country does not make strategic sense. As a result, he is hinting at the possibility of phasing out the company’s credit card business in the United States.

HSBC Looking for a Buyer

While attending a World Economic Forum event in Jakarta, Gulliver told reporters on the sidelines that he was considering a departure from the U.S. card market. He stated, “If we can’t find a buyer we will put it into rundown.”

HSBC is currently Europe’s largest bank. Last month, it said it planned to slash up to $3.5 billion in costs and cut back in retail banking in order to lift its return on equity.

Gulliver Wants to Change the Shape of the Business

The bank noted its decision to consider dropping the U.S. card business

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We all dream of a “successful” retirement, but are you doing anything to help make that success a reality? The truth is that a prosperous retirement isn’t going to just happen. You have to plan in order to find success in retirement. As you consider your retirement options, consider, too, the following:

Where Will Your Money Come From?

The first thing you need to figure out is where your money will come from. You can practice looking for money leaks in your budget right now, in order to reduce your spending. However, you can’t just rely on downsizing during your retirement. You also have to know where your money is going to come from.

Most people assume that some of it will come from Social Security, and some of it will come from the distributions they take from a retirement account. However, what happens if Social Security fails, and the stock market crashes right before you retire? You nee

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Verizon Wireless and Payfone, a mobile payment platform, have teamed up to let customers shop online and pay for items by adding the purchase price to a cell phone bill. Shoppers complete online transactions by entering a cell phone number, and the purchase is added to that number’s bill; smart phones, tablets, and PCs can all be used.

Verizon customers can also link their Payfone accounts to a credit card or debit card. This might be handy since larger purchases may exceed transaction limits. And the service will have a way to intelligently route payments to the right funding source based on rules and preferences.

In April, Payfone announced it was partnering with American Express’s new Serve payment service, providing a carrier billing component on that platform.

If a user can’t pay via a cell-phone bill because the purchase exceeds preset limits, Payfone can complete the transaction with another linked account.

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