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Giving merchants technical support whenever they need it — as opposed to a technology-based tool — is a lesson that’s taken on greater significance as FrontStream develops its product to compete with Square.

Dodd Frank 1073, which covers remittances and U.S. initiated international payments, is one of more than two dozen payments related rules or regulations either issued in 2012 or with a pending deadline during the next year, which cover most payment types.

Internet connectivity has become an imperative for U.S. small businesses, yet most companies lack formal policies for Internet security and even fewer have contingency plans in the event of a security breach that could expose payment-card and other data.

Bank of America is offering a service that makes it possible for travelers to retrieve their chip-and-PIN card's forgotten PIN without calling a customer service representative or waiting for a mailed response.

As financial institutions increasingly create specialized credit and debit cards and merchants continue to push loyalty cards, the overwhelming abundance of plastic could create a greater need for a mobile wallet than any other consumer incentive.

Committees serving an independent organization seeking to help the U.S. payments industry prepare for its conversion to EMV smartcard and contactless technology have begun examining key aspects of the transition.

The U.S. migration to the EMV secure chip-card standard has been so slow that some have compared it to the country's adoption of the metric system. But after years of delays, the mobile-wallet craze changed the rules.

Visa began offering its V.me digital wallet this week with PNC, the first of more than a dozen bank partners it has lined up.

More financial institutions are working to issue EMV chip cards while merchants are dropping bills to install the proper terminals before certain liability-shift deadlines arrive. But as this transition finally reaches consumers, some may adopt habits that negate the benefits the EMV standard provides.

Many third-party mobile payment providers, such as Google and Isis, are seeking bank partners for their mobile wallets. Should banks agree to their terms or go it alone?

In the grand scheme of mobile payment readiness and adoption globally, Japan has always been at or near the top of industry measuring sticks. Now one of Japan’s mobile communication giants is partnering with MasterCard Inc. to expand contactless payments worldwide starting in 2013.

Jumio Inc., which provides technology for accepting card payments through a webcam or smartphone camera, hired CyberSource's Michael Orlando as its chief sales officer.

MasterCard's approach to mobile payments is driven greatly by the series of mobile phone innovations simultaneously occurring around the world, according to the network's group executive for mobile.

Any uncertainty in mobile wallet development fuels speculation in an industry anxious to see what shape mobile commerce will ultimately take. In this industry, products that make it even farther than where Isis is today don't always work out.

Total System Services expanded its payments processing reach this week in Africa and Mexico.

Debit-card use grew over 2011 and 2010 for straightforward reasons: consumers wanted to reduce credit card debt and more merchants are willing to accept debit cards for small transactions.

A report that Square is near a deal to put its credit-card reader in more New York City taxis isn’t true, according to a statement from New York City’s Taxi and Limousine Commission.

Plastic cards or mobile phones remain popular devices for contactless payment technology developers, but the human wrist is not far behind.

Capital One knows how to integrate big bank purchases. But in the era of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, it’s facing new challenges as it swallows ING Direct and HSBC’s credit cards.

Many in the industry are starting to catch on to the concept that payments, while a critical foundation for mobile wallets, are taking a back seat to the sexier consumer-facing digital coupons, loyalty programs or targeted promotions through a mobile phone.