David Heun

A new company has formed to tackle the pressing issue of routing EMV debit transactions in compliance with federal mandates, a task the payments industry has undertaken for nearly two years.

Mobile wallet providers such as PayPal, Google and LevelUp already allow consumers to add funds by scanning a credit or debit card with a smartphone's camera. Banks can use similar technology to allow customers to open and fund new accounts from a mobile phone.

PreCash Inc. says consumers using its Evolve Money online and mobile application for cash bill payments will now have the option to use a debit or prepaid card.

The many factors necessary for mobile commerce to succeed are finally converging at the start of the 2013 holiday shopping season.

Singapore commuters using EZ-Link transit payment cards now have the option of adding money to those cards with a tap from a Near Field Communication-enabled smartphone.

Adyen has developed encryption software that protects payment data for consumers shopping online through desktop or mobile devices.

American Airlines and US Airways have argued that a planned merger will be good for "competition, consumers and choice." But days before the merger's closing, changes the airlines made to a popular credit card reward may end up having the opposite effect.

Software updates have largely resolved the glitches that have marred the rollout of the new Ventra contactless fare system on Chicago's famed "L" trains, and the process of applying the same updates throughout the city's bus fleet will be completed this week, Chicago Transit Authority officials said.

Thailand's state-owned telecommunications provider TOT says it will launch a Near Field Communication-based mobile pay service in the country next year.

The Federal Reserve Board says it followed a proper system for establishing debit interchange caps and fully abided by the Durbin Amendment's requirement for merchants to have two unaffiliated networks to choose from for routing debit transactions.

American Airlines and US Airways have argued that the combined airline will be good for "competition, consumers and choice." But just days before the merger's closing, changes that the airlines have made to a popular credit card reward may end up having the opposite effect.

Airtag has added PayPal as a payment option for consumers using the KFC Fast Track mobile wallet to order and purchase food in advance at the fast food chain's U.K. restaurants.

Electronic payments provider ACI Worldwide named two new executives to its leadership team and is also establishing a new South America headquarters in Sao Paolo, Brazil.

With a goal of speeding up delivery of Near Field Communication-enabled handsets, China Mobile Limited has purchased EMV chip-card testing capabilities from Fime, as well as received a license to begin operating a new, fourth-generation wireless network.

If retail stores seemed a little less crowded over the holiday weekend, tablets or smartphones are likely to blame, as the volume of e-commerce payments made via mobile devices surged during what some are now calling the "Cyber Five" shopping days — from Thanksgiving Day through Cyber Monday.

Fraud prevention provider ValidSoft has joined the Fast Identity Online Alliance to help create standards for online authentication, the company announced Dec. 3.

Because of the changes that mobile will bring to the point of sale, the payments industry can expect to see acquisitions, consolidations and investments in that market over the next six to 12 months.

MasterCard worked with Intel and Netherlands-based NXP Semiconductors to establish a digital service that allows consumers to initiate online transactions by tapping their MasterPass card or Near Field Communication-enabled smartphone against a built-in NFC reader.

A mobile wallet project in Hungary is taking the leap from testing to market rollout after receiving positive feedback from initial users.

As the prepaid card market has matured, it has become a "business not for the faint of heart or haphazard investor" because of regulatory scrutiny and competition's effect on pricing, according to Aite Group.