Payments

Early next year, consumers in New Zealand will have the option of making payments through the Semble mobile wallet.

PALM BEACH, Fla.—Few at the Electronic Transaction Association's Strategic Leadership Forum would deny Apple Pay could help prepare the nation for mobile payments and rescue Near Field Communication from obscurity.

Mobile wallets, at their most basic, enable consumers to manage their accounts and/or make purchases without cash or cards. On top of that foundation, many companies have come up with inventive features to set their apps apart.

A future where consumers make payments with wearable devices is not far off, especially in Spain where CaixaBank is working with Gemalto to launch a contactless EMV payment wristband.

PagBrasil, a payment processor in Brazil, has launched a product that provides accelerated confirmation for online payments made using boleto bancario, the electronic payment method in Brazil.

Square's diversification strategy has landed in coffee shops, as the company has upgraded an application that uses location-sensing technology to more closely match pre-order preparation with consumer arrival.

The introduction of Apple Pay as a mobile wallet competitor illustrates that the payments landscape calls for partnerships and collaboration, rather than a “winner take all” mentality.

Chase is working with Apple to vet potential developers and merchants after more than 500 people attended and responded to Chase's two live webinars about its three Apple Pay developer labs in Columbus, Ohio, Tampa, Fla., and San Francisco, Calif.

Mobile payment provider Powa is partnering with DataCap Systems to shorten the time it takes merchants to deploy mobile point of sale applications, a move the companies hope will provide differentiation in a crowded marketplace.

Providers of rapidly changing payments products such as prepaid cards, automated payments and dispute resolution are continuing to turn to independent sales organizations to reach targeted merchants.

Mobile payment company Boku has acquired German-based mopay, adding considerable carrier billing volume and clients at a time when Boku and other payment companies face increasing competitive threats from new players.

Facebook's peer-to-peer (P2P) transfer app is currently only a screen grab circulating around Silicon Valley, but payments companies should brace for a series of competitive apps from the social network, according to industry experts.

Square Inc. has closed its $150 million Series E funding round, putting the payments technology company at a $6 billion valuation, according to a New York Times blog.

With the coming split from eBay, PayPal is poised to become one of the new leaders challenging the plastic card and magnetic stripe hegemony.

Payment companies are building mobile loyalty and financial literacy programs to target today's digitally-savvy kids, but are discovering a physical presence is still necessary for redemption.

Hamstrung by low consumer and merchant adoption, multi-account cards are still a product in search of a market. But Stratos Inc. believes Bluetooth technology is the tonic that will lure users.

Mobile handset manufacturer Samsung is tossing its hat into the mobile payment market in China, which is in its early stages but offers substantial opportunity.

GoDaddy is partnering with online payments provider Stripe to entice small businesses to embrace e-commerce by adding faster credit approval and card acceptance.

The transit card may be on its way to joining tokens in the dustbin, as huge contactless payment deployments in cities like Beijing add flexibility for commuters and reveal the broader utility of Near Field Communication.

EBay and PayPal were once rivals, but in 2002 they joined to become a single company. Since then, PayPal has worked to move beyond the confines of its parent's online auction site. It is now well prepared for its planned spinoff.