Technology

The end of the swipe-and-sign era is right around the corner, and merchants such as bars and restaurants could face major risk as of October if they haven't migrated their point of sale systems to accept EMV.

Rather than compete head-on with Square, Intuit is crafting a strategy of providing software that complements Square's offerings for merchants that have more complex needs.

Canadian payments company DirectCash Payments has unveiled a new payment-capable wristband.

Information technology firm Infosys and digital payments company Payveris have partnered on a new service for bill payment and money management for credit union and community bank customers.

The mobile wallet market is constantly changing, often in unexpected ways. Products have evolved dramatically in a very short amount of time, and companies that seemed committed to one strategy a year ago now find themselves on a completely different path.

Samsung is confident even though its payment service comes almost a year after Apple's. Unlike Apple Pay, Samsung's can work with the magnetic-strip card readers that are common in stores and restaurants. On top of that, Samsung won't charge banks and credit-card issuers transaction fees.

The recent explosion of mobile commerce and payments would not have been possible without open and sharable technology, and the credit union service organization CO-OP Financial Services aims to duplicate that success with its own technology.

The payment processors Heartland Payment Systems in Princeton, N.J., and VersaPay in Toronto have partnered to sell a cloud-based accounts receivable product.

The timing brings Samsung's mobile wallet to market just a few weeks shy of Apple Pay's one-year anniversary — and in line with the expected annual refresh of Apple's iPhone line.

WeChat, a smartphone instant-messenger, digital wallet and car-booking service rolled up into one, is probably worth $83.6 billion. As people spend more and more time sending short messages to each other, such services have become some of the hottest technology businesses around.