Merchant

Independent sales organizations, which sell payment card acceptance to merchants, see a big opportunity in Visa Inc.’s decision to accelerate the switch to EMV chip-and-PIN cards in the United States.

It really is a great time to be a credit risk officer, but many people might think that is an absurd statement.

Hearing the “click-click” of a train conductor punching small holes in paper tickets soon will become less apparent on the Long Island Rail Road when conductors begin using a smartphone device to accept card payments on the busy New York rail system.

Citigroup Inc. and Bank of America Corp. closed some of their card customers' accounts this week, citing data breaches at unidentified retailers.

Citigroup Inc. has launched a mobile-rewards application with Best Buy Co. Inc. that enables its cardholders to redeem ThankYou rewards, Citi announced Aug. 18.

A collaboration involving Digi Telecommunications Sdn. Bhd., Alliance Bank Malaysia Sdn. Bhd. and MasterCard Worldwide has led to the launch of Malaysia’s first telco-branded prepaid card, the companies announced Aug. 16.

Whether a merchant is struggling financially or not, the cost of transaction fees on credit card services may not be as big of an issue as the difficulty understanding the monthly merchant-account statement, an executive with the Michigan Retailers Association believes.

A service that lets consumers make electronic payments to online merchants without disclosing their bank account details is expanding into more financial institutions through a deal with the online banking software vendor Jwaala.

It made headlines in Europe, but this week’s announcement that three major telecommunication companies in Germany have joined forces to bypass supporting banks in handling Mpass mobile-payment transactions is a concept not likely to quickly take hold in other countries, one industry observer says.

Eager to exploit new growth opportunities in a sluggish economy, certain payments-industry technology suppliers already are positioning themselves to capitalize on opportunities Visa Inc.’s U.S. EMV chip card initiative may trigger as participants upgrade systems and equipment, observers say.