Payment processing

Easycash Loyalty Solutions GmbH, an Ingenico SA company, has taken over the payment processing for French prepaid card issuer LaSer, strengthening a partnership that began a year ago, terminal maker Ingenico announced Nov. 21.

First Data Corp. has completed the merger of its transportation payment services with Transportation Clearing House LLC, creating a joint venture the companies hope will become a leading card provider in the transportation industry, the card processor announced Nov. 17.

Isis has had a big week, as 45 partners of the GSM Association mobile operator trade group agreed to support the joint venture’s preferred payments model: Near Field Communication that uses SIM cards used in many mobile phones.

Like a pop star who sells more records posthumously, the Google Checkout payment service may prove most beneficial to Google after it is phased out.

New technology tools are emerging in the market that merchant acquirers can offer or merchants themselves can adopt to comply with Payment Card Industry data-security standards.

Chip-based fuel cards soon may replace magnetic stripe versions oil companies issue for use at European gas station stores and fuel pumps.

Card data security risks for online merchants or those operating payment schemes via cloud computing will get much attention next year from the Payment Card Industry Security Standards Council.

The U.S. is increasingly moving toward the EMV chip card standard as a panacea for credit card fraud, but it actually may be a Pandora's box.

Valve Corp., the company that provides the popular PC game platform Steam, disclosed Nov. 9 that it suffered a data breach this month.

Payments processor Vantiv known until July as Fifth Third Processing Solutions, on Nov. 10 filed to raise funds with an initial public offering that could be one of the biggest IPOs of the year.

Star, First Data Corp.’s electronic funds transfer network, is moving forward with plans to focus more heavily on e-commerce by signing a nonbinding letter of intent to participate in CardinalCommerce Corp.’s Universal PIN Debit Service.

Fleet card provider FleetCor Technologies Inc.’s third-quarter results benefitted from its mergers-and-acquisitions strategy and its new universal card product, one analyst says.

The casino industry is turning a corner, but the long-term impact of the so-called Durbin amendment on Global Cash Access Holdings Inc.’s revenues remains unclear, executives from the company told analysts during a Nov. 9 conference call to discuss third-quarter earnings.

Near the end of the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago’s one-day payments symposium Sept. 26, Wal-Mart Stores Inc.’s Jamie Henry posed a question that had yet to be answered during the previous eight hours.

Global Cash Access Holdings Inc.’s revenue and net income continued to decline in the third quarter as a result of losing its largest customer, Harrah’s Entertainment, late in 2010, the company announced Nov. 9.

The Western Union Co. is moving forward with plans to expand its cross-border business-payments unit now that it has officially completed a deal to purchase a division of London-based Travelex Holdings Ltd.

E-commerce provider Alibaba Group Ltd. reportedly is preparing to expand access to it Alipay online-payments platform to countries outside of China within the next three months.

People’s United Bank will use a mobile financial-services product suite from Fidelity National Information Services, or FIS, under a deal the companies announced Nov. 9

Online Resources Inc. on Nov. 8 reported a third quarter net loss of $1.7 million, or $0.05 per share, compared with a $700,000 loss, or $0.02 per share, during the same period last year.

Square Inc. continues to secure investors, and the latest one is bringing a lance to the table.