John Adams

Square, which made a short-lived attempt at digital gift cards in late 2012, is debuting a new gift card service today with a heavy emphasis on an older payment instrument: plastic.

Apple Pay's launch about a month ago was accompanied by an almost unprecedented amount of hype and media attention, but it takes more than buzz to shift the world to mobile payments, and Apple's job is far from over.

McDonald's Corp. has tested a wide range of mobile payment technology throughout the world, and its ability to do so is rooted in an old decision based as much on customer service as technology.

For payment technology developers, the stakes couldn't be higher as the FCC develops new rules that could support or eliminate net neutrality, a system in which Web access is equal for most users, regardless of size.

Alibaba's cooperation with Apple may start with offering Apple Pay in the Chinese market through an intermediary to skirt regulatory hurdles, Alibaba Vice Chairman Joseph Tsai told a Chinese-language news wire.

Alibaba needs help to build a market in the West and is openly courting cooperation with Apple and PayPal, suggesting sweeping e-commerce alliances and even acquisitions may soon follow.

Merchants are enticed by the lure of the huge e-commerce market in China, enough to give a number of early client wins to Alipay's U.S. merchant acquisition effort.

As the mobile point of sale market matures, more merchants will migrate from smartphones to tablets, which Roam's Scott Holt said requires device-specific changes in design and technology.

As payments leave plastic behind, the pressure is on banks to stay in front of merchants and consumers. But in its pilots of payment-capable wristbands, Royal Bank of Canada is finding that there are some areas that banks should steer clear of.

As Apple and the Merchant Customer Exchange battle it out over smartphone-based payments, Royal Bank of Canada and MasterCard are jumping past the phone to cement their roles in the fast-growing market for wearable payments.

Verifone is changing its logo and marketing to signal the many pivots it is making to provide a broader range of services to merchants that must embrace mobile and digital technology to stay relevant.

YellowPepper hopes its existing mobile banking relationships in Latin America will give it a head start as it faces off against a number of other companies when bringing its mobile payment platform to new markets.

Google Wallet, which faces pressure to stay relevant after the launch of Apple Pay, has added recurring bank transfers and alerts to rekindle consumer demand for mobile payments on non-Apple devices.

Advancements in consumer mobile payments are setting the stage for similar changes to corporate employee payments, such as travel purchases and other expenses.

The Peterbrooke Chocolatier has a new recipe for mobile payments: it's blending Apple Pay with NCR's order-ahead and mobile point of sale technology to engage its customers in a new way.

Apple Pay scooped up one million payment cards in its first 72 hours, 60% of which were Visa cards, but MasterCard's chief executive still expressed optimism for the payment network's chances in the rapidly shifting mobile landscape.

Apple Pay scooped up one million payment cards in its first 72 hours, 60% of which were Visa cards, but MasterCard's chief executive still expressed optimism for the payment network's chances in the rapidly shifting mobile landscape.

About 60% of the first cards loaded onto Apple Pay are Visa cards, and the card network plans to build on this beginning in an aggressive mobile commerce strategy, according to CEO Charles Scharf.

About 60% of the first cards loaded onto Apple Pay are Visa cards, and the card network plans to build on this beginning in an aggressive mobile commerce strategy, according to CEO Charles Scharf.

The Merchant Customer Exchange is facing harsh scrutiny after some of its merchants shut off all Near Field Communication capabilities to show allegiance with the merchant mobile wallet over Apple Pay.