Credit

ATMs, long a valuable resource for cardholders wanting ready access to cash, have become a growing target for crooks who like them for similar reasons, according to a researcher from ACI Worldwide.

The bank unit of Cabela's Inc., an outdoors merchandiser, has renewed a credit card processing agreement with the Atlanta payments company First Data Corp.

Visa Inc. is furthering its e-commerce strategy by buying a payment platform for online games.

Visa Inc. no longer will require merchants outside the U.S. to annually validate their compliance with the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard if three-fourths of their transactions comply with the EMV chip-and-PIN standard, the network announced Feb. 9.

China’s credit card industry recorded its first pretax profit of $251 million in 2010, and profits could reach $1.8 billion by the end of 2015, emphasizing China’s potential for future card-market growth, new research suggests.

For the fourth consecutive quarter, TransUnion’s Credit Risk Index declined, indicating consumers were less of a credit risk in 2010 compared with the previous year, the Chicago-based credit bureau reports.

U.S. Bancorp’s Elavon Inc. merchant-processing unit has Class B-certified Hypercom Corp.’s SPOS32 EMV payment software on Hypercom’s T4200 and M4200 payment devices in Canada, the Phoenix-based terminal maker announced Feb. 9.

Visa Inc. is paying $190 million in cash to buy PlaySpan Inc., a private company that provides e-commerce services to developers of online games and smartphone applications, the card brand and network announced Feb. 9.

Woori Bank Ltd. soon plans to sell a 20% share of BC Card Co. Ltd. to KT Corp., the South Korean bank announced Feb. 8

Lakshmi Vilas Bank Pvt. bank has become the 10th bank in India to launch the Internet Mobile Payment Service in India, a spokesperson for the Karur-based bank tells PaymentsSource.

Discover Financial Services is buying about $1.1 billion in deposits from the retail banking arm of insurer Allstate Corp., the Riverwoods, Ill., company said Tuesday.

The recession has caused consumers to change how they mentally account for money, including how they use credit cards, Susan Menke, vice president and behavioral economist at Mintel Comperemedia, noted during a Jan. 28 Web seminar on consumer spending trends.

Merchants using direct marketing services from Marketing Architects Inc. will be able to determine faster whether a consumer’s payment card is valid through a new authorization service the company is using from VeriFi Inc.

As the mobile-payments ecosystem continues to take shape, Total System Services Inc., or TSYS, is dipping its toe into the pool for the first time through a partnership with a Singapore-based trusted service manager for financial institutions, retailers, transit operators and mobile-service providers.

Telefónica O2 UK Ltd. is adding its name to a growing list of wireless carriers planning to launch Near Field Communication initiatives to enable consumers to use their smartphones to initiate payment at the point of sale.

U.S. credit cardholders boosted their overall borrowing in December for the first time in more than two years, according to a Feb. 7 Federal Reserve G.19 report. But card issuers should not break out the champagne just yet, analysts say.

U.S. credit cardholders boosted their overall borrowing in December for the first time in more than two years, according to a Feb. 7 Federal Reserve G.19 report. But card issuers should not break out the champagne just yet, analysts say.

Fidelity National Information Services Inc., or FIS, says demand is picking up for core processing upgrades, contradicting a report last week from rival Fiserv Inc., company executives said during a Feb. 8 conference call to discuss earnings.

French bank Crédit Agricole SA has selected Gemalto NV to support its deployment of Near Field Communication mobile-payment services in Nice, the France-based technology provider announced Feb. 8.

Aeromexico operator Airways of Mexico SA de CV plans to CyberSource Corp.’s fraud-management software, the Visa Inc. subsidiary announced Feb. 8. The Mexican airline will use CyberSource’s technology to protect its card-not-present ticketing transactions at its call centers and website.