Mark Horwedel, chief executive of the Merchant Advisory Group, an association of more than 100 of the nation’s biggest merchants that concerns itself with payment issues, plans to step down at year’s end. Replacing him will be John Drechny, chairperson of the group’s board of directors and currently senior director …

Merchants using hospitality point-of-sale systems face a relentless onslaught by wannabe hackers coveting their payment data. What can put an end to it? Hospitality merchants, such as restaurants, bars, and entertainment venues, know that an effective point-of-sale system can help them operate their businesses better. They can glean valuable information …

To explain today’s mergers and acquisitions in merchant acquiring, mix a hefty dose of technology and a dash of foreign spices with traditional flavors like greater scale. And don’t forget a little fear. For years, greater scale seemed to be the big driver of mergers and acquisitions in the merchant-acquiring …

Many years ago, in a press interview, I commented on the importance to banks and payment companies of understanding the then new phenomenon of Facebook. At the time, it looked as if social media might become a major platform for payments. It turns out that mobile media has taken that …

Shares of processor EVO Payments Inc. began trading on the Nasdaq market Wednesday at an initial price of $16. The company put 14 million shares out to market, for expected gross proceeds of $224 million. In early trading Wednesday the stock was at $19.60, a 22.5% increase from its opening value. EVO …

The PCI Security Standards Council issued what it calls a “minor update” to the current version 3.2 of the Payment Card Industry data-security standard. Version 3.2.1 adds no new requirements and is meant to eliminate any confusion regarding effective dates for existing PCI DSS requirements and Secure Socket Layer (SSL) …

In its biggest acquisition yet, PayPal Holdings Inc. is buying Stockholm-based payments firm iZettle AB for $2.2 billion. The San Jose, Calif.-based online payments provider late Thursday confirmed an afternoon of rumors about the pending deal. Jacob de Geer, iZettle’s chief executive and co-founder, will stay on after the acquisition’s …

First American Payment Systems LP announced an integration with the Uluro billing and communication platform that is used across multiple industries. Payments provider Paya said it now offers the CardFlight SwipeSimple product to its merchants. Merchant processor Payment Data Systems announced record revenue of $5.8 million in the first quarter, …

Visa Inc. is sponsoring a contest in which the winner will receive an international trip on which all expenses will be paid without using cash. Applicants must submit a short video by June 15. Fidelity National Information Services Inc. (FIS) has extended to 2022 an agreement with Minor League Baseball …

Ever since Apple Pay emerged in 2014, experts have scratched their heads over the general failure of contactless mobile wallets to catch on faster with U.S. consumers. Now comes research indicating how wallet sponsors might turn things around by focusing on what consumers are most looking for in wallet services …