Payment processing

SCVNGR-created LevelUp announced today that it has 500,000 users, which it says is validation of its unconventional approach to point of sale payments.

The Payment Card Industry Security Standards Council's participating organizations voted that third-party security assurance and best practices will be the two key areas for the PCI special interest groups to study in 2013.

The deal to buy FSV would provide U.S. Bank access to a crucial piece of the prepaid market it can do a lot with — the corporate payroll segment.

WikiLeaks lost more than $50 million in potential donations after Visa Europe, MasterCard and American Express blocked payments to the anti-secrecy group, according to its founder Julian Assange.

First Data and Fexco Merchant Services, an Irish-based transaction processor, have expanded First Data's GlobalChoice dynamic currency conversion into Canada.

Guitar Center added a new payments instrument at the point of sale, integrating PayPal via middleware provider AJB Software Design Inc.

Revel Systems is now delivering its iPad-based point-of-sale products into larger retail settings — and intends to make a push for equipping major retailers early next year.

Network Merchants Inc. has launched the iProcess Mobile Gateway Service, a standalone mobile service for merchants that want to process credit cards through mobile devices.

Global eTelecom Inc. and transmodus have integrated GETl’s check and ACH processing into the linked2pay payment gateway.

When Total System Services Inc. closes its deal in the next month to acquire ProPay and its various payments services, the payment processor will have a new "Square-like" look and feel to ramp up its merchant acquiring business.

It's common to accuse the payments industry of living in the past, relying on aging systems like paper checks and magnetic-stripe cards. But the future holds some very intriguing changes — and in many cases, it’s already here.

Flint Mobile announced today that its mobile card-acceptance app is available to on Apple's app store.

Junk food and beer are staples at every sports game, and the KFC Yum! Center in Louisville, Ky., is adding another one: mobile payments with SCVNGR's LevelUp.

The Payment Card Industry Security Standards Council is providing guidelines to help industry participants better identify and analyze security risks.

Braintree continues its international expansion, taking its mobile and e-commerce payment processing into Australia.

Wordpress, the world’s most popular Web publishing platform, has begun accepting Bitcoin, an international digital currency and payment system with no central issuing authority.

Total System Services reached an agreement to purchase ProPay, a Lehi, Utah-based payments technology provider.

The e-commerce and point of sale card processor eProcessing Network has enhanced its services with the addition of Level III data processing functionality.

Mobile apps from Starbucks and Dunkin’ Donuts may prove useful for on-the-go coffee guzzlers, but their approach may not translate well to other retail environments. A few companies are taking a different approach to modernizing payments for sit-down restaurants and other merchants.

Powa Technologies, Europe’s answer to Jack Dorsey’s Square, is considering an initial public offering after its U.S. competitor raised $200 million from investors including Starbucks.