Bailey Reutzel

Many payments startups face the difficult task of getting consumers to switch their lifelong habits. Waspit says college students are the best audience to target because they are tech-savvy and willing to experiment.

Transactional data reveals much about a customer to a merchant. Facebook’s social data doesn't have direct ties to spending, but it paints a detailed picture of the consumer that retailers could use to create pertinent offers that shoppers will actually use.

Dollar General announced the launch of Microsoft Xbox Live PIN-on-receipt product with prepaid provider InComm, creating an easier way for consumers to purchase Microsoft Points and Xbox Live memberships.

Acculynk has entered a partnership with Gesa Credit Union to pilot Payzur, a peer-to-peer payment system.

The alternative payments provider Dwolla has garnered much attention from its recent move to facilitate payments through Twitter, but the concept has been tried before — repeatedly, and with few success stories.

Visa Inc. attracted 50 banks and credit unions to its V.me digital wallet by offering a system that did not distance issuers from customer relationships and transaction data. But does the wallet hold the same appeal for the merchants that accept it?

The alternative payment provider Dwolla now gives users the ability to send money via tweet by using the hashtag #dwolla.

The alternative payment provider Dwolla now gives users the ability to send money via tweet by using the hashtag #dwolla.

The alternative payment provider Dwolla now gives users the ability to send money via tweet by using the hashtag #dwolla.

Monitise plc has a goal of providing banks with the basic tools to build their mobile payments strategy. A budding relationship with Intuit Inc., which has more than 1,200 financial institution clients, could help it further this initiative.

HotelTonight is the newest company in a growing trend of payment players to provide an eGifting service for its users, especially through mobile devices.

Bitcoin-Central, a French digital currency exchange that handles the largely unregulated Bitcoin currency, now operates under French regulation after parent-company Paymium partnered with payment services provider Aqoba.

Cheap travel and social media continue to connect people all over the world. Companies focusing on e-commerce and payments gateways could see success as the world becomes more globalized by helping merchants handle payments from those who want to spend beyond their borders.

Aiming to make the shopping experience less painful, mobile point-of-sale platform QThru launched an app that lets consumers bypass checkout lines and pay with their smartphones.

Chris Larsen, who made waves in consumer finance in the 1990s and 2000s with E-Loan and Prosper, is seeking to shake up the industry again with Ripple, a peer-to-peer payment and credit system.

Chris Larsen, who disrupted consumer finance in the 1990s and 2000s with E-Loan and Prosper, is seeking to shake up the industry again with Ripple, a peer-to-peer payment and credit system.

Looking to gain millions more users through traditional financial institutions, LevelUp announced a partnership with First Trade Union Bank to create a private-label mobile payment and loyalty app.

The list of mobile card readers seems endless today, but it's about to get a lot bigger, a trend that shows consumers are ready for mobile payments.

Before the mobile card reader phenomenon took off, it was unlikely that a small-business owner could walk into a nearby store, pay $10 and walk out minutes later with the ability to accept card payments. Today, mobile payment devices are competing for shelf space with a growing number of major retailers.

Adyen is launching a portable card reader that accepts both mag-stripe and EMV chip-card payments — the latter a feature that’s still rare in the U.S. even at hard-wired point of sale terminals.