POS and Retail

Consumers, banks and merchants all want faster payments, but new technology only seems to be making the process slower.

E-commerce is eroding the appeal of shopping malls, so the operators of some of the largest shopping centers are starting to dish out their own share of digital disruption.

For a customer to switch from a tried and true payment method to a new one, the provider must be able to offer a unique payment experience which offers concrete and obvious advantages like top-level security, unique rewards and unprecedented agility. For these reasons, the Merchant Customer Exchange's retailer-led mobile payments initiative CurrentC was bound to fail.

There is an old saying by Mark Twain, "Never let the truth stand in the way of a good story, unless you can't think of anything better." Recently, Walmart filed a lawsuit against Visa complaining the company won't let it require PINs on transactions made with chip-enabled debit cards.

When TableSafe launched in 2011 under the name Viableware, it was a simpler time in payments technology and the company had a simpler product to offer — a tablet-like check holder that lets customers complete card payments without leaving the table.

When black market criminals use tighter security than global payment systems, you know the banking industry needs to wake up. Two-factor authentication (2FA) is now a standard practice on the ‘dark web,’ yet most banks require just one password to authorize transactions.

Working to help corporations streamline their processes for business-to-business transactions, Total System Services Inc. has launched a new commercial payment product leveraging virtual account numbers.

While the current phase of the U.S. chip card migration is still far from the finish line, attention is turning to the 'next' EMV migration at gas stations, which figures to be just as challenging.

Heartland Payment Systems has leveraged newly purchased merchant marketing company Beanstalk Data to build a restaurant analysis service.

Google revealed a dizzying number of projects at this year's Google I/O event, and it is courting developers to turn each of them into a thriving commerce platform. Whether or not Android Pay was mentioned by name, it was an undercurrent of nearly every offering.

While the benefits of coupon 'extreme stacking' are traditionally geared to consumers, it can also help retailers understand consumer behavior and better plan their marketing initiatives.

Google is helping developers cut steps out of the path to accepting digital payments with several key moves unveiled around the Google I/O developers conference taking place this week.

Total System Services Inc. has announced an agreement with Featurespace to apply machine-learning technology to fight fraud.

Despite the confusion surrounding new electronic identity regulations in Europe, there's still plenty to be excited about.

Visa's rules for card acceptance exceed 800 pages — plus supplements — and MasterCard's are nearly 300 pages. But even though the card networks have explained their expectations in painstaking detail, the difference between strict rules and mere guidelines is much blurrier when finally given to the merchant.

With the CFPB flexing its regulatory muscles, it's no surprise that collectors are making compliance a priority.

Back in 2014, Dekkers Davidson, then CEO of the Merchant Customer Exchange, declared that the mobile wallet venture would draw inspiration from Uber and be just as disruptive to financial services as the popular ride-sharing app was to the taxi industry. But Uber's success stems largely from its decision to make payments invisible, whereas MCX was developing its CurrentC wallet to do just the opposite.

Mobility's incursion into merchant services is normally treated as a threat to independent sales organizations and legacy acquirers, who will find themselves on the outside as technology-based services take over the store.

Every business runs the risk of fraud, but some are more likely to be targeted than others. The customers you court, the products you sell and even the amount of time you have been in business can make you more vulnerable to an attack or more appealing to a cyber criminal.

When Walmart switched on Walmart Pay this week at 600 stores in two states, it marked the beginning of a new era, when merchants finally take the reins in mobile payments — and, by extension, the future of digital commerce.