Cards

MIAMI BEACH, Fla.–Payment-industry experts who gathered in Miami Beach, Fla., April 27 to 29 to attend the 23rd Card Forum & Expo reflected for the first time in a few years an attitude that seemed genuinely ready to greet certain disruptive changes instead of brace against them.

Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. would consider reimbursing financial institutions for any costs associated with reissuing credit cards that might have been compromised when someone breached the company’s PlayStation Network last month (see story).

MIAMI BEACH, Fla.-If certain “conspiracy theories” have any merit, the Federal Reserve Board might be heeding signals from Capitol Hill as it takes more time to craft final debit-interchange rules, one payment-industry analyst suggested April 28 at the Card Forum & Expo in Miami Beach, Fla.

A Virginia circuit court on April 29 awarded $5.3 million in damages to the former chief executive and chairman of banking technology vendor Online Resources Corp. in an employment lawsuit he filed against the company.

Deluxe Corp. reported a 2% drop in first quarter earnings, to $32.6 million, as the company’s core check printing business continued to decline.

Hypercom Corp. is describing its new M5000 mobile-payments terminal as “futureproof” because it designed the device to prevent obsolescence. The company foresees a place for the product in businesses ranging from hotels and restaurants to taxis and delivery companies.

Target Corp. is testing the sale of co-branded prepaid cards with American Express Co. in more than 100 stores, the companies confirmed on Friday.

WASHINGTON — With some major banks now considering chip-card technology, fraud is expected to gravitate to less-secure cards.

MasterCard Inc. announced that Rima Qureshi has joined its board of directors.

Endeca Technologies Inc. said its Endeca Mobile Commerce system is being used by Sallie Mae's Upromise for mobile rewards.

PayPal Inc. has acquired mobile payments startup Fig Card Corp., the company announced on its blog April 28.

Independent sales organizations may increase their profit potential from cash-advance loans, which merchants pay back using future card receivables, by taking on more of the risk, observers say.

The prepaid card marketer Green Dot Corp. is putting more muscle into its expansion beyond retail checkout lanes.

Cardtronics Inc. saw its net income rise 55%, to $6.5 million for the first quarter ended March 31 from $4.2 million during the same period a year earlier, the company announced April 28.

Combining targeted online marketing with social media, Discover Financial Services will begin paying a $50 bounty during the first week of May for each referral who becomes a cardholder, according to a company executive.

MasterCard Inc. announced April 27 it has appointed Marcie Verdin as its group head for global person-to-person payments.

MoneyGram International Inc. announced April 28 that its net income rose 30% to $14 million in the first quarter from the same period a year earlier.

It's show time for Fiserv.

WASHINGTON — Sony Corp.'s disclosure that a massive data breach may have let thieves steal the personal information of more than 77 million PlayStation users is playing into the hands of banks attempting to change a Federal Reserve Board proposal to limit debit interchange fees.

Green Dot Corp.’s first-quarter revenue rose 26% year over year to $117.3 million as the prepaid card company saw a jump in the number of new cards it activated for customers.