Sean Sposito

Even USAA Federal Savings Bank, one of the most aggressive in its use of technology, is treading carefully in social media and mobile, where the slightest privacy snafu can spark a major outcry.

Startup makes a cubic device for merchants that customers tap their phones against to receive loyalty points.

Financial technology startups dot the landscape like grain silos mark the surrounding farmland. In Silicon Prairie, mobile payments, online banking and core banking services are the new cash crop.

Actor Ashton Kutcher has invested in mobile payments provider Dwolla and wants to "build a killer [bleeping] company in Iowa."

Visa announced Wednesday a tool to help issuers spot fraud.

ICICI Bank has agreed to use SmartyPig's GoalSaver social savings product.

BillMyParents made a strong course correction when it chose to abandon its inventive online parent-billing payment system for a more conventional product: plastic cards.

American Express (AXP) has begun removing its prepaid gift cards from shelves in New Jersey due to a law that requires retailers to collect ZIP codes from purchasers at the point of sale.

Google's (GOOG) purchase of the prepaid card processor TxVia shows its commitment to shore up its digital wallet's risk management capabilities, particularly in light of some recent snafus.

Google (GOOG) has acquired the prepaid card processor TxVia, the companies said Monday.

American Express says it hired a new technology executive for the team that handles its digital wallet, Serve.

Celebrity-endorsed prepaid cards have become formidable rivals to banks, and it's not just because of their star power. Behind every big celeb is a seasoned banker.

Heartland Payment Systems (HPY) is launching three smartphone applications for college campus cards.

Fidelity National Information Services Inc. (FIS) has elected Frank Martire, who has been its chief executive since 2009, to the chairman's seat.

NetSpend Holdings launched a prepaid MasterCard developed with entertainment conglomerate BET Network.

Location-based offers, a major selling point of mobile wallets, may have staying power, but one prominent company recently told the feature to get lost.

ThreatMetrix, a cyber security technology company, announced Tuesday that it raised $18 million in a financing round.

Amex opened a new Manhattan office last year to nurture its digital wallet, Serve — and to remove the 200 employees devoted to that project from the culture and tradition of its main office.

Rather than pitch his new digital wallet only to banks, iCache founder Jon Ramaci is offering his product, the Geode, on the crowd-funding website Kickstarter.com, a site not typically associated with banking technology.

Transaction Network Services said Monday that it is launching a mobile payment gateway service for its customers.