Payment processing

Soon the question every clerk asks at checkout may not be, 'paper or plastic,' but instead, 'mobile bar code or NFC?'

VeriFone's stock price tumbled after the maker of payment terminals reported third-quarter sales that fell short of analysts' estimates, citing unfavorable currency swings, competition in Europe and a fire in Brazil.

Ingenico continues to pursue U.S. market share to capitalize on the breakup of rival payment-terminal maker Hypercom last year, and wireless terminals are a key part of that strategy.

Online marketplace Etsy is putting more marketing muscle behind its PayPal alternative, Direct Checkout, as it waives processing fees this month and makes Direct Checkout a requirement for accepting its virtual gift cards, which launch next month.

The Dan Beard Council of the Boy Scouts of America has begun using a mobile card reader from VeriFone in its Annual Popcorn Sale.

Square has stolen the spotlight — after convincing Starbucks to switch to Square for processing, the mobile-payments vendor gave other merchants the option to accept cards for a flat $275 monthly fee. How can a rival mobile-pay provider compete?

PreCash Inc., which allows the underbanked to make electronic bill payments and other transactions in cash, says it now allows payments to more than 10,000 billers.

Kilowatt Credit Union of Madison, Wis., has selected First Data for debit processing services. The credit union also joined the Star Network, signing a multiyear agreement under which Star will provide PIN-secured debit point of sale and ATM access to its cardholders.

Wright Express Corp. continues to expand its global presence, acquiring a 51% interest in Unik SA, a privately held provider of payroll cards in Brazil, for approximately $21.9 million.

PayPal and Square allow their mobile-wallet users to pay by checking in at merchant locations with an app that transmits their photo to the merchant for authentication. With ShopKeep POS, PayPal is showcasing this feature at a New York film festival.

SCVNGR's LevelUp, which announced a charitable-donation option today, is not the first to spot a link between charities and mobile spending and rewards. Shopkick's mobile rewards app began life in 2009 as CauseWorld, which had a strong focus on donating any rewards earned to charities.

Harland Financial Solutions has offered financial institutions limited ATM and point-of-sale debit support for some time, but its clients had to look elsewhere for merchant, credit card and fraud-prevention services. Now they don't have to.

VeriFone is making good on its original promise to open up its Square-like mobile card reader, Sail, to developers.

AT&T has agreed to sell Square's smartphone-based card readers in its 1,000 company-owned retail stores.

Adding payment acceptance to a website could be as easy as embedding a YouTube video or sharing a link on Facebook.

Isis, the mobile-payment joint venture backed by AT&T, Verizon Wireless and T-Mobile USA, is on track for a debut in September, following months of delays and a change in strategy last year.

Total System Services is furthering its European growth by opening a financial services support center in Milton Keynes, UK, through its TSYS Managed Services EMEA joint venture.

USA Technologies has added a Web service called QuickConnect, which helps developers and original equipment manufacturers use the vendor's ePort Connect platform for accepting card payments.

Jack Henry & Associates elected its CEO, John F. "Jack" Prim, as chairman after Michael E. Henry, who was its chairman since 1994, resigned.

Small business owners in Europe certainly won't have a shortage of mobile payment options to choose from, as more companies enter the market locally and from the U.S.