IHL, which tracks retail payment trends, has slammed EMV in a recent report, calling it "a colossal waste of time, effort and capital to the retail industry."

There have been various media reports about some of the security shortcomings within Apple Pay. The shortcomings are not security holes per se, in the sense that a hole is generally unintended. No, the security issues were deliberate, done with the goal of making signups and initial usage as easy as possible for shoppers.

Investment in London fintech firms is soaring and young companies are being drawn to the area, especially the Canary Wharf district, thanks to the efforts of incubator Level39, a vibrant social scene, and close proximity to large banks.

London is turning into a major payments and financial services technology innovation hub, luring venture capital and talent from the U.S. and other parts of Europe.

Buyout firm Abraaj Group is working with Bank of America Corp., Goldman Sachs Group Inc. and JPMorgan Chase Inc. as it plans an initial public offering of its stake in a credit-card processing business, according to people with knowledge of the matter.

Commerce Bancshares in Kansas City, Mo., has established relationships with several new organizations, including environmental groups and universities, to offer co-branded credit cards.

The traditional cash register is making way for new technology based on tablets, smartphones and other, sleeker devices. These products open up a range of new capabilities for the retailer and the consumer.

Verifone CEO Paul Galant is not happy with his company's performance in Asia, and plans a number of changes including personnel and the separation of China as its own region.

Hackers based in China breached U.S. Office of Personnel Management computers, according to American officials, stealing records of as many as 4 million current and former federal employees in one of the largest breaches of government personnel data.

After hearing that his friend organized an adult hockey team and ended up losing about $3,000 each year that he fronted for ice time because he never got paid back by others, Ian Andrew Bell came up with the idea for RosterBot.

At the Wayfair network of retail brands, more people are using its mobile commerce apps, but only a smaller percentage are on board with using those apps to make purchases.

The 28-year-old Young Americans Bank was founded to teach kids to save, but now the bank is focused on showing its customers how to spend wisely. CEO Richard Martinez says tots still prefer paper statements, while tweens are getting their allowance via bill pay.

American Express Co. has to spend more on its credit-card rewards program if the lender wants to remain competitive with Visa Inc. and MasterCard Inc. products, according to Nomura Holdings Inc.

Qiwi, a Russian payment services company is working with Beeline Russia to allow its customers access to Qiwi's digital wallet service.

Fifth Third Bancorp's new advanced cash-vault product is being rapidly adopted by the bank's clients, the Cincinnati Business Courier reported.

Pinterest is the latest social media platform to announce plans to monetize the products pictured on its browsing app through a buy button powered by Stripe.

Facebook's new Instant Article service for publications underscores the competitive threat that the site's business model poses to banks. There's one particular feature that should have banks worried: because Facebook's primary interest is ad income, product pricing is of secondary importance.

As cards include more embedded technology, issuers and manufacturers face the tough question of how much card power to sacrifice for stronger fraud protection.

Another year brings another attempt by Google to develop the winning formula that will allow it to compete long-term in the mobile payments war.

Comptroller of the Currency Thomas Curry described cyber-readiness as a "system-wide" exercise, and said a new tool for assessing readiness can help banks of all sizes.