Technology

The service, which carries a $9.95 monthly fee, recently completed a private beta test, with users managing more than $1 billion on the platform.

Where existing money and payment systems are wanting, mutually consenting adults are resourceful in finding ways to transact, notwithstanding government restrictions.

Hackers are stealing enthusiasts’ phone numbers, then changing the passwords to clean out their financial accounts; bank makes pledge to human rights groups.

For high-value, low-volume transactions, that is. Big Blue formally launched the platform Tuesday, but the custody bank has been using it for months, as has a group of Canadian institutions.

Wei Ke, a partner with Simon-Kucher & Partners, explains how banks can help consumers get over their price sensitivity.

Like many financial companies, the brokerage wants to go where customers are. Since that means communicating with them via a third-party platform, it is working through privacy and security issues.

As payments guru David Birch notes, multiple currencies spur competition and innovation, and can reduce stagnation, writes Eric Grover, a principal at Intrepid Ventures.

All business categories are vulnerable to breaches, but hotels seem to attract the most attention.

Fiserv's acquisition of U.K.-based real-time payments provider Dovetail Group Ltd. is a move made with a global vision in mind.

Business customers are demanding technology that's as good as what they use in their personal lives.