Merchant processor First American Payment Systems L.P. on Thursday reported that it bought the independent sales organization portfolio of Chase Commerce Solutions, the merchant-acquiring and payment-processing unit of banking giant JPMorgan Chase & Co. Neither company would disclose the purchase price or the number of ISOs and merchants involved in the …
Read More »U.S. Processor Offerings Didn’t Generate Much Spark in 2015’s IPO Market
Payment processors Square Inc. and First Data Corp. made headlines in 2015’s market for initial public offerings of stock, but neither company was a standout, according to recent market reviews. In fact, a new analysis by PitchBook, a Seattle-based provider of a data-analysis platform for venture-capital and other financial firms, lists …
Read More »Don’t Just Fill Your Fridge, Shop From a New Samsung Model With a MasterCard App
You thought your refrigerator was just for storing and cooling your food? Think again. MasterCard Inc. says it has introduced the first app that lets a consumer buy groceries from a refrigerator. The app is preloaded into Samsung’s new, high-tech Family Hub refrigerator that features a 21.5-inch touchscreen as well …
Read More »Wall Street Gave a Thumbs Up to Payments Companies in 2015
It was a lousy December for payment stocks, but 2015 as a whole saw shares of electronic transaction processors far outperform the major market indexes, according to a new report from Chicago-based investment firm Barrington Research Associates Inc. Shares of 28 payments companies posted a mean return of 11.47% last …
Read More »The Data-Breach Seesaw: Card Compromises Down, Social Security Exposures Up
Data breaches that compromised credit and debit card information were constantly in the news in 2015, but the number of cards affected is way down from the totals for 2014 and 2013, according to a nonprofit that monitors breaches. The San Diego-based Identity Theft Resource Center reports that as of …
Read More »New Visa Security Requirements Aim To Reduce Small Merchants’ Data Breaches
Visa Inc. has announced new data-security requirements for small merchants, one of which says that beginning Jan. 31, 2017, merchant acquirers must annually validate compliance by their so-called Level 4 merchants with the Payment Card Industry data security standard. Other new Visa requirements involve qualified integrators and resellers, or QIRs. …
Read More »The Fed Is Tweaking Its Next Payments Survey To Get More Info on Fraud and Mobile Payments
In payments-industry circles, the Federal Reserve System’s triennial Payments Study is one of the most eagerly awaited documents to come out of Washington. The sweeping study tracks the use of credit, debit, and prepaid cards, checks, and other non-cash payment methods. For its next survey, due out in about a …
Read More »Global Payments To Buy Heartland in $4.3 Billion Cash-And-Stock Deal
Confirming rumors that have been rife for days, merchant acquirer Global Payments Inc. announced late Tuesday that it will buy smaller rival Heartland Payment Systems Inc. in a cash-and-stock deal valued at $4.3 billion. At $100 per share, the deal represents an 18% premium over Heartland’s closing share price Tuesday. …
Read More »EMV Still Lifting VeriFone as Retailers Convert and the Oil Sector Begins Switchover
The conversion of U.S. mall and Main Street retailers to EMV chip card acceptance continues to lift VeriFone Systems Inc.’s North American revenues, but now the leading U.S.-based point-of-sale terminal maker and payment-services provider is getting ready for a rush of orders from petroleum marketers preparing to meet a key …
Read More »A Peek at One Processor’s Early EMV and Mobile Transactions Yields Some Surprises
An analysis of recent credit and debit card transaction data by credit-union services organization The Members Group gives some interesting insights about the penetration of two new payment channels in the U.S.—EMV chip cards and mobile payments. For example, EMV transactions amounted to 26% of all transactions that TMG processed over …
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