Competitive Strategies

Ajay Banga, chief executive of Mastercard Inc. for the past decade and the strategist who converted what had been mostly a consumer card network into a player in non-card and real-time payments, said Tuesday he will step down Jan. 1 as CEO. He will then assume the role of executive …

PayRange Inc. said its recent procurement of $70 million in funding will help accelerate its efforts to displace cash and convert cash-and-coin-only machines to electronic payments. Announced Tuesday, the funding will help with PayRange’s 2020 Consumer Choice Program. That is an effort to convert cash-only machines to electronic payments. Laundry operators, …

Wire-transfer provider MoneyGram International Inc. said transaction volume from its MoneyGram Online service grew 39% year-over-year in the fourth quarter; the company reported a net loss of $11.9 million compared with a loss of $12.5 million in 2018’s fourth quarter.Former Fit Pay Inc. shareholders are suing Garmin International, alleging the company, known for its …

Fiserv Inc. announced more than 600 financial institutions have joined the Zelle peer-to-peer payments network through its Turnkey Service for Zelle program, with more than 300 of those institutions coming on board last year.Private-equity firm Great Hill Partners and payments provider VersaPay Corp. announced the closing of the previously announced acquisition of VersaPay by an …

The controversial Libra cryptocurrency project gained a new member Friday with Shopify Inc.’s announcement it will join the Libra Association, the governing body for the fledgling venture. Shopify’s decision comes in the face of a string of eight high-profile defections from the association since October, including decisions by Mastercard Inc., …

Thanks mainly to strong results in North America, leading non-bank ATM network owner Cardtronics plc saw fourth-quarter revenues rise, and in 2020 is seeking new growth from more partnerships with banks and fintechs and the deployment of deposit-taking ATMs. Houston-based Cardtronics now has nearly 1,000 deposit-taking and cash-accepting ATMs in …

Fiserv Inc. said this week its First Data unit has performed the first PIN-on-mobile contactless transaction involving only a commercially available mobile device. Observers say the breakthrough could expand the availability of PIN-on-mobile technology significantly by allowing small merchants like food-truck operators and other mobile sellers to accept card payments …

Ally Financial Inc. announced this week it will buy CardWorks Inc. for $2.65 billion. CardWorks owns Merrick Bank, a major player in merchant acquiring. In the deal, expected to close in the third quarter, Detroit-based Ally says Merrick Bank will merge into Ally Bank. Merrick has approximately $32 billion in …

Mobile wallets aren’t the revolutionary products they were a few years ago, but as more and more entities launch new ones across the world, the apps are getting much more diverse and cheaper to use. That’s because, while sponsors continue to battle for adoption, they’re finding pricing to be a …

Prepaid card and banking services provider Green Dot Corp. reported $10.6 billion in gross dollar volume on its products for the fourth quarter, up 8% year-over-year. Green Dot also announced a multi-year extension of its contract with Apple Inc. for issuing the Apple Cash card.ATM network operator Cardtronics plc said Amazon.com customers can now add cash to …