Point-of-sale

Synchrony wasn’t unscathed by the pandemic — consumer spending slowed during the first half of the year — but its mix of private-label and cobranded cards for everyday items suffered far less than other issuers' cards that emphasized luxury and travel.

Citizens Financial Group has branded its point of sale lending software as Citizens Pay, saying it wants to more clearly define it as a merchant tool for "budget-friendly payment options" for customers who want a transparent and predictable way to finance purchases.

Alliance Data plans to make Bread’s buy now, pay later options available to credit card-issuing merchant clients.

MagicCube’s i-Accept is a hardware-free option for accepting card and electronic payments that could appeal to cost-conscious small businesses and open up a new market for banks that provide them payments services.

Longtime finance entrepreneur Jackie Reses, who led Square Capital for the last five years, is leaving the company at the end of the month. Square has not yet named a successor.

The card networks, along with PayPal and Citi, are responding to competition from the likes of Affirm, Afterpay and other "buy now, pay later" lenders. Should traditional credit card lenders be worried?

The company will offer retail installment loans up to $40,000 through a partnership with Mastercard's Vyze unit.

Square's gross payment volume tumbled by 15% year-over-year due to COVID-19’s impact, but revenue jumped as online selling rose, Cash App doubled in users and Square enabled almost $900 million in PPP loans.

Citigroup plans to let credit card customers finance big purchases on Amazon.com over longer periods of time — a deal that may spur sales at the e-commerce giant while boosting the bank’s interest-bearing balances.

The coronavirus pandemic has cast a shadow over the use of cash, which is often perceived as dirty because it frequently changes hands and is almost never washed.