John Adams

Walmart plans to support Visa Checkout despite a rocky relationship between the two giant companies whose recent disputes have often involved legal action.

There is a lingering fear that enabling real-time transfers between consumer bank accounts will open a window for fraud that cannot be closed. But as demand for real-time payments grows, two consortiums led by large banks hope to address the banking industry's fraud concerns by developing an interoperable identity shield.

Digital and alternative currencies are often cast as libertarian-friendly payment vehicles whose very mission engenders government antagonism. But in Canada, things are a bit friendlier.

There is a lingering fear that enabling real-time transfers between consumer bank accounts will open a window for fraud that cannot be closed. But as the demand for real-time payments grows, two large bank-led consortia hope to address the banking industry's fraud concerns by developing an interoperable identity shield.

There is a lingering fear that enabling real-time transfers between consumer bank accounts will open a window for fraud that cannot be closed. But as the demand for real-time payments grows, two large bank-led consortia hope to address the banking industry's fraud concerns by developing an interoperable identity shield.

Payment cards aren't dead, but they are buried under a growing pile of new and high-tech payment devices.

FuturePay hopes its alternative credit model can shake up in-store payments as the company plots to go beyond its e-commerce roots.

Mobile technology companies love baking purchase capabilities into websites and mobile apps, providing myriad choices that make securing merchant buy-in the next big play. But there is a question of whether the rapid growth of in-app purchase may be "too much."

It's a precarious time for security at gas stations, many of which are taking advantage of the two-year grace period they received for EMV card acceptance when the rest of the bank and retail world faced a 2015 deadline.

With emerging payments technology, it's important for legacy companies cover as many bases as possible. For MasterCard, this means putting its technology into everything from jewelry to home appliances to a reimagined take on the classic plastic payment card.