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.

ACI Worldwide is flexing its acquired bill payments technology muscle, inking a deal with financial technology provider Shaw Systems Associates Inc. that will allow Shaw's clients to expand loan payment options to their customers.

The House Oversight Committee, which earlier this year admonished the Department of Justice over its tactics for combating fraud in the payments system, has turned its focus to the role of the Federal Trade Commission in the ongoing crackdown.

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.

PSCU's Third Annual KnockOut started with some 30 teams comprised of 150 competitors from 11 credit unions. After an intense 24-hour bout, team Tech Attack's balance-transfer app solution was victorious.

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.

Egyptian mobile payments firm EMP has agreed to provide third-party card processing services to Inov8, a digital payments company in Pakistan.

The cryptocurrency software provider KnCMiner has created a new Bitcoin wallet for iPhone 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.

JPMorgan Chase & Co., the biggest U.S. bank, said a previously disclosed data breach of its systems affected 76 million households and 7 million small businesses.

Interactive Voice Response (IVR) technology can be a huge help for payment collectors, from allowing customers to make payments over the phone to simply checking their balance.

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.

Banking and payment technology provider a FIS has completed its acquisition of payment processor Clear2Pay, a transaction it started early last month.

MasterCard now offers an anti-fraud tool called SafetyNet, designed to protect banks and payment processors against hackers.

Corelation, provider of core processing systems to credit unions, said $177 million InvesTex CU of Houston signed with the company.

PayStand, an e-commerce gateway for alternative and traditional forms of payment, is opening up its application programming interface (API) to support payments with credit cards, e-checks and Bitcoin.

Boku Inc. is working with European mobile network operators to enable users to buy physical goods through its carrier billing service, which previously faced regulatory constraints that limited it to digital content sales.

The recent exploit of Signature Systems terminals, used by Jimmy John's restaurants and other clients, shows that the point of sale is still a key target for hackers. And the addition of EMV-chip technology won't scare them off.