The prepaid card provider Plastyc Inc. announced Monday that it was awarded a patent for aspects of online card payments.

A host of new mobile payment applications promise many of the perks of near-field communication technology, without the costly hardware.

GREENWOOD VILLAGE, Colo. – Bellco CU is offering its members EstateLogic to provide them with web-based storage for their estate planning.

Encore Capital Group Inc., a San Diego-based debt buyer, reported net income of $13.7 million in the quarter ended March 31, up 26% from the year-ago period.

Debt buyer Asset Acceptance Capital Corp., based in Warren, Mich., reported a drop in revenue and an uptick in cash collections for the first quarter ended March 31.

MADISON, Wis.-Social media is getting a lot of attention from credit unions, but do tweeting, friending, and posting videos really help credit unions grow?

WASHINGTON — With some major banks now considering chip-card technology, fraud is expected to gravitate to less-secure cards.

Endeca Technologies Inc. said its Endeca Mobile Commerce system is being used by Sallie Mae's Upromise for mobile rewards.

PayPal Inc. has acquired mobile payments startup Fig Card Corp., the company announced on its blog April 28.

OGDEN, Utah – Goldenwest CU said it launched an Android app that will allow its members to conduct many everyday account transactions with their personal mobile device.

The prepaid card marketer Green Dot Corp. is putting more muscle into its expansion beyond retail checkout lanes.

Citibank announced Thursday it is hiring up to 1,400 debt collectors in Indonesia after the country's central bank found irregularities in the bank’s collection practices handled by third-party collectors.

MasterCard Inc. announced April 27 it has appointed Marcie Verdin as its group head for global person-to-person payments.

MoneyGram International Inc. announced April 28 that its net income rose 30% to $14 million in the first quarter from the same period a year earlier.

MIAMI BEACH, Fla.-Poor service from a credit card service independent sales organization helped convince James McKelvey to co-found Square Inc., the exec told attendees on April 27 at the 23rd annual Card Forum and Expo co-sponsored by PaymentsSource and the American Banker in Miami Beach, Fla.

WASHINGTON — For consumers, convenience and rewards are the most commonly discussed benefits of near field communication for mobile payments. There is also a substantial security benefit, though banks are reluctant to let consumers know.

EBay Inc.’s PayPal Inc. unit during the first quarter March 31 continued to expand its global foot print while its other payment unit, Bill Me Later, became a more mainstream payment method in the U.S. with 42% growth to $324 million from $228 in total payments volume.

There are more indications that card data was obtained by fraudsters after the data breach at Sony Corp.’s PlayStation Network.

The opportunity to capitalize on the explosive growth in payments as the industry steadily moves to electronic and mobile platforms is attracting many new players and business models, but the winners ultimately will be those who can leverage payments on a massive scale, according to Citigroup Inc.’s top enterprise executive.

Visa Inc. has invested an undisclosed amount of money in Square Inc., the start-up company that lets merchants accept card payments through a small square-shaped device that plugs into smartphones.