Economy

What's in a name? Many payment companies have struggled with this question, finding out too late that the name they chose sent the wrong message or was rendered unusable by situations outside the brand's control.

Bitcoin enthusiasts are serious about Bitcoin merchant adoption, some might even say obsessed. But cryptocurrency nerds may find their obsession lucrative with BitPay's referral program.

If Seamless Distribution AB is going to pitch U.S. merchants on being able to duplicate the successful Starbucks mobile payment experience at their businesses, its new relationship with prepaid product provider InComm potentially provides a significant boost.

U.S. consumers, whose use of revolving debt fell by more than 15% once the Great Recession hit, are finally re-embracing the credit card.

Optimistic predictions aside, many Americans remain unaware or even skeptial of paying with their smartphones.

Barclays has experimented with a number of mobile, wearable and online payment systems in its quest to bring its payment offerings into the modern age. Through its tests and live deployments of new technology around the world, the London-based issuer has learned how to entice consumers to move beyond plastic cards.

In the banking world, branches came first and ATMs came later to streamline the experience. But in the Bitcoin world, ATMs came first with limited features, and the ATM makers are working hard to add the sort of services that one might find in a mainstream bank branch.

A veteran acquiring executive describes recent changes at First Data Corp. as "the awakening of a sleeping giant" that has placed a renewed emphasis on independent sales organizations and sales agents.

The launch of Android Wear, Google's platform for smartwatches, has opened the floodgates for new payment ideas. Some developers are flocking to Google's platform, and others are ignoring Google entirely.

The decision to deploy EMV chip-and-signature credit cards in the U.S., instead of the chip-and-PIN model common in other countries, has a lot to do with technology constraints.

A veteran acquiring executive describes recent changes at First Data Corp. as “the awakening of a sleeping giant.”

The payment capabilities in the new Fire Phone are just the latest in a series of products that only Amazon could pull off. The e-commerce giant's offerings range from basic services to its own digital currency.

Independent Resource Network Corp., a Westbury, N.Y.-based independent sales organization, recently agreed to pay $400,000 and waived its right to funds in a merchant's reserve account to settle a civil suit brought by the Federal Trade Commission.

Amazon.com Inc.'s Fire Phone, unveiled today, has a button that blends mobile purchasing with real-world shopping.

Independent Resource Network Corp., a Westbury, N.Y.-based ISO, has agreed to pay $400,000 and waived its right to funds in a merchant’s reserve account to settle a civil suit..

Using President Teddy Roosevelt’s “Square Deal” as inspiration, API Software Inc. has created an app ISOs can use to help merchants tabulate the best payment services deals.

Even though Bitcoin merchant processor BitPay is not required to maintain an anti-money laundering (AML) program, the startup maintains one and is beefing it up with the hiring of former Visa executive Tim Byun.

Although smartphones and tablets are capturing the imagination of consumers, we haven’t even begun to relalize their potential value for merchants.

The financial services industry sets the pace for technology innovation. Wall Street’s role as an allocator of capital and the industry's need for massive amounts of data have a lot to do with that..