John Adams

Chinese banks will reportedly pay half of what U.S. banks are forking over to support Apple Pay, a sizable gap that's due to Apple's relative fame in different parts of the world and the sizeable hype behind the product's U.S. launch in 2014.

Starbucks' loyalty program will soon reward bonus points based on money spent rather than recognizing individual purchases, a change designed to ease workflow and increase participation rather than dilute benefits, company executives said Monday morning.

Online gambling is like gun shows and weed—legal and very lucrative, though with enough regulatory baggage that most service providers are reluctant to go near them.

They are barely out of college, but this young generation of consumers has already shortened payment technology cycles, forced virtual currency into the mainstream, and left processors scrambling to stay relevant.

Cardless ATMs are still a rare sight in the U.S., but the use cases are proliferating for companies that want to upend traditional cash machines.

Football season may be over, but the game is just getting started for the payment companies that saw the Super Bowl as their own proving ground.

The speed required by omnichannel commerce extends not only to payments and processing, but increasingly, also to vetting, registering and onboarding new users.

Visa has accumulated a 9.99% stake in Square, according to a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission, giving a boost to the mobile point of sale company, which has faced challenges recently.

The app ecosystem has enabled payments to blend almost invisibly into the background of many cash-based services, such as ride-sharing and food delivery, but sometimes there is a need to let payments take center stage.

Most consumers, when dining, still enjoy the simplicity of dropping cash on the table than using something newer, like an EMV card or a mobile wallet, even when those payment forms are becoming more commonplace in other stores.

Heartland Payment Systems is quickly accumulating technology to serve smaller merchants and restaurants, two key pieces of the services that made the processor attractive to Global Payments, which is in the midst of acquiring Heartland.

PayPal technology exec James Barrese will leave the company April 1, according to an SEC filing.

Financial institutions that are considering technology to power digital and mobile payments have an unconventional choice—the underlying blockchain structure that enables bitcoin to hasten execution and cut costs.

Hong Kong's status as an iconic financial capital stands in contrast to its relatively lackluster record for technology. The city is regarded as below average as a hub for startups, and MasterCard places Hong Kong in the middle of the pack for mobile payments readiness.

Ericksen is one of the "EMV people," part of the card network-driven push to get the entire globe dipping instead of swiping.

Ann Cairns, president of international markets for MasterCard, helps guide initiatives such as financial inclusion and other international initiatives. The rapid uptake of payments technology is challenging MasterCard to create an attractive experience that goes beyond payments.

In addition to battling crime, bankers face a more competitive market filled with well-funded bank alternatives, putting Bank of America Merrill Lynch's Stephanie Wolf on the spot to play offense and defense for one of the world's largest financial institutions.

McNamara has been recognized in prior years as one of PaymentsSource's Most Influential Women in Payments, partly on the influence of her organization, Citi Retail Services, which accounts for a huge portion of Citi's overall business.

There's a cultural shift that's necessary for some companies, Manus said, noting that for many organizations, past success is the biggest threat to a healthy future.

'Fast' may not be the first word that comes to mind when describing her four-year journey to win over the country's largest banks, but for Jan Estep, it's a testament to the perseverance and negotiating prowess necessary to achieve a breakthrough in payments efficiency.