BuyerDocs has been formed to secure wires for down payments made by home buyers from hacking, phishing, imposters, and spoofing. Wire fraud plundered approximately $1 billion from the real-estate industry in 2017, the company says. The Smart Payment Association and payment card manufacturer CPI Card Group Inc. announced that CPI …

The cryptocurrency Litecoin was still riding high Friday morning following a mid-week announcement that a new entity called LitePay Inc. will provide merchant processing in 41 countries, including the United States, starting Feb. 26. As of mid-morning, Litecoin traded at $220, up 38% from $160 at noon Tuesday. Also this …

The Accredited Standards Committee X9 Inc. and the PCI Security Standards Council announced they will jointly develop a unified PIN-security standard. Currently each organization maintains a separate standard for PIN use, which could result in an entity being subject to one or both of the existing standards. The joint effort …

Fourth-quarter hardware sales for ATM and banking and retail-payment equipment manufacturer Diebold Nixdorf Inc. fell 11% year over year to $473.2 million, but software and services revenues rose 19% and 7%, respectively, the company reported. Credit card balances hit $834 billion in the fourth quarter, up 7% from $779 billion …

Fresquez Companies, operator of nine restaurants at the Albuquerque International Sunport airport, announced it is replacing its vending machines with unattended kiosks for food and other products that use weight-sensing shelves from ShelfX Inc. to determine a consumer’s product selection. Consumers swipe a payment card to unlock the kiosk. Payment …

Card-data analytics company Cardlytics, which went public Friday, was trading at nearly $16 a share at mid-morning Monday, up 18% on the day to that point. The stock is up 30% since its debut. YapStone, which processes payments for apartment and vacation rentals, announced the first closing in a Series …

The National Retail Federation predicts total industry sales this year will increase 3.8% to 4.4% over 2017’s levels, with online and other non-store retail sales rising 10% to 12%. A startup called WeTravel, which streamlines travel planning, booking, and payments for small businesses, has closed a $2 million funding round. …

Payment-processing hardware and software provider VeriFone Systems Inc. said the Apptizer mobile order-ahead app is now integrated with its Verifone Carbon point-of-sale devices. In related news, VeriFone said Helsinki-based Euroloan Group Plc’s Mash application is now integrated into the Verifone Connect system, enabling consumers to select a pay-later option when …

Point-of-sale products seller General Credit Forms Inc. said it purchased Paper Systems Inc., a manufacturer of paper rolls for POS and ATM systems. Paper Systems will continue to operate as PSI. Terms were not disclosed. Euronet Worldwide Inc., which is based in the United States but operates ATM and other …

Data-services provider Womply announced Womply Engage, a customer relationship management service for small businesses that enables merchants to create and manage email marketing programs. In an effort to address data breaches in the financial-services industry, the Accredited Standards Committee X9 Inc. said it is seeking experts for an initiative to create …