ISOs

"Omnichannel" is an increasingly common term in the payments technology industry, but it means different things to different people.

Chase Commerce Solutions has sold its entire independent sales organization portfolio of accounts and associated contracts to First American Payment Systems.

It used to be that chargebacks were just another cost of doing business. But with the e-commerce world growing by leaps and bounds, online merchants are experiencing a corresponding spike in chargeback rates that's eroding their bottom lines and jeopardizing their merchant accounts.

Between regulatory and competitive pressures, ISOs have a lot on their plate for 2016, particularly for the most growth-hungry companies. Here is some food for thought for ISOs as they plan their strategies for the year ahead:

Nearly two-thirds of small businesses create a formal plan for growth. But ISOs aren't always privy to the details.

As payments technology went into warp speed the past four years, many banks, acquirers and independent sales organizations (ISOs) faced the difficult task of keeping up with all of the potential changes.

The Payments Security Task Force and the EMV Migration Forum will offer educational materials about EMV-chip card payments, including templates of social media posts and hashtags; educational downloads that include visual aids and training guides; media interview tips; and more.

Capify, a New York-based global alternative financing company, has landed a partnership with e-commerce giant Alibaba to provide cash advances and loans to small and mid-sized businesses in Australia.

Payments technology is advancing so quickly on so many fronts that Spindle CEO Bill Clark is changing his requirements for hiring new sales staff.

With the clock ticking for the Oct. 1 deadline for EMV adoption, acquirers and independent sales organizations have a clear opportunity to become payments consultants.

Payment Alliance International, a Kentucky-based independent sales organization and ATM provider, has partnered with charitable fundraising firm Digital Processing Solutions to create a new "Digital Donations" program accessible through ATMs.

As digital technology has reshaped the acquiring business, some of the industry's biggest names are making splashy investments in mobile payments and merchant marketing.

At a time when many independent sales organizations feel threatened by disruptors like Square and Groupon, which sell directly to merchants, Verifone is relying more on ISOs to extend its offerings to smaller stores.

Host Card Emulation, the technology that allows contactless mobile payments without access to a phone's secure element, could bust the barrier that still lingers between mobile payments and loyalty.

Encryption has become a political hot potato for the Payment Card Industry Security Standards Council as it compiles a list of validated encryption vendors and services - and leaves off some companies that say they deserve to be recognized as secure.

Starbucks' decision to support Apple Pay within the coffee chain's mobile payment app seems like a natural alliance of two major forces in mobile payments, but it raises a significant question: Why not do the same with Square, with which Starbucks has much deeper ties?

Thirty-four percent of merchants interviewed late last year for an Aite Group research report on EMV readiness had never heard of the U.S. migration to EMV-chip payment cards, despite the fast-approaching October 2015 deadline set by the card networks.

It may take years for most small merchants to accept EMV-chip cards in the U.S., but the country's ultimate goal of adopting the secure payment technology is coming together faster than what was seen in other EMV markets.

While Visa and MasterCard aren't yet applying the same level of pressure for tokenization security as they are for EMV-chip cards, the card networks' CEOs are clear that this technology is their new expectation for e-commerce.

As Starbucks has proven for years, few retail interactions are more tailor-made for mobile payment than coffee sales. But when U.K.-based grocery chain Marks & Spencer launched its own coffee loyalty app in a 58-store trial in London, it chose to keep its menu much simpler.