Payment cards

Federal restrictions on debit interchange are still causing sleepless nights for many bankers — even those whose institutions are exempt from the new fee caps.

Joining a growing list of similar companies trying to move more cash payments to cards, Payment Data Systems Inc. will launch iRemotePay next month to meet growing merchant demand for a payment-acceptance option to use away from their actual stores or if they do business in outdoor markets.

Many institutions are considering mobile phone-enabled check capture, a popular way of depositing checks in which consumers use their smartphones to take photos of checks to deposit them remotely.

Sovereign Bank is taking its credit card operations in house.

As Visa Inc. has been ramping up its promotion of one-time-use card data for security, Discover Financial Services is winding down its support of a similar technology.

First Data Corp. will make two Trusteer services available for its clients to help protect Internet banking and to enhance compliance with new federal guidelines for online security, Trusteer announced Aug. 31.

Bank technology vendor S1 Corp.’s board told shareholders not to accept ACI Worldwide Inc.’s exchange offer, at least not yet.

Diebold Inc. has found a way to decouple the brains of the ATM from the body.

Free checking may be nearing extinction at large banks as they attempt to recoup lost debit interchange revenue, but at smaller institutions the product is not even an endangered species.

UniRush LLC is following the lead of other prepaid card providers and has released a free smartphone application cardholders may use to check their balances and review transaction and funds-transfer histories.

The prospect of American consumers becoming regular users of EMV smart cards in the not-too-distant future means financial institutions and ATM manufacturers should already be addressing the extensive work needed to ensure the migration goes smoothly for consumers, ATM company executives say.

Not only are more banks offering mobile banking, more are also releasing multiple applications to try to appeal to as many types of banking customers as possible.

The screen-card maker Dynamics Inc. is improving its production capabilities through the purchase of a 115,000 square-foot facility in Pittsburgh, Pa.

A service that lets consumers make electronic payments to online merchants without disclosing their bank account details is expanding into more financial institutions through a deal with the online banking software vendor Jwaala.

BillMyParents appears to be promoting the concept that “mother knows best.”

Acknowledging that community banks and credit unions also can have “big bank” ATM security and reliability, NCR Corp. is seeking to expand its ties with smaller financial institutions by offering them an affordable version of its ATM services major banks use, the company announced Aug. 16.

Starbucks Corp. changed its mind about allowing a customer to share his prepaid card with the world.

Credit unions should get a better understanding of MasterCard’s intentions regarding supporting a two-tiered debit interchange system.

When Pago Mobile Inc. launched its mobile wallet with 53 merchants in Mountain View, Calif., last week, initial industry reaction focused on the smaller payments-application company venturing into turf more commonly associated with Google Inc. in northern California.

For the first time in its 11-year history, ING Direct is sending customers checkbooks. But the checks are useless until they pass a gauntlet of security measures the online bank designed.