Competitive Strategies

VeriFone Systems Inc. introduced its Carbon Mobile 5, a point-of-sale device that fits in the palm of the hand and can run payment, loyalty, and inventory-management applications on the Android operating system. Financial Transmission Network Inc. (FTNI) said Merchants Foodservice, which FTNI says is the 12th-largest U.S. food-service distributor, will …

In an effort to make its cards more financially attractive to merchants, American Express Co. plans to cut its worldwide discount rate by potentially up to three times the level it had previously predicted for 2018. AmEx, generally the costliest of the major card brands for merchants to accept, typically …

Cross-border payments provider Veem announced it now offers working capital to merchants through a deal with merchant-financier BlueVine. Payments provider Bluefin Payment Systems LLC said its services will be available to users of practice-management software from Rev360 that is designed for use in eye-care practices. Payments provider Century Business Solutions …

The search by online-payments kingpins for avenues into physical-world stores reached a new milestone with the acquisition by Stripe Inc. of point-of-sale technologist Index Inc. Terms of the deal were not disclosed, according to an Index spokesperson, who added the company has no immediate comment on the transaction. A Stripe …

Merchants wondering whether it’s worth it to invest in improving the consumer experience on their mobile Web sites or mobile-shopping apps may want to consider the findings of Worldpay Inc.’s “Mobile Payment Journey” survey. In the survey, released this week, 37% of U.S. consumers said they would spend more for …

The newbie bank-controlled Zelle person-to-person payments service already is a major player on the P2P scene, but it could win even greater adoption through clear messaging, a mobile-first orientation, more emphasis on its underutilized request feature, and an appeal beyond Millennials. Those and many other recommendations and observations are included …

Mobile-payment and -loyalty provider LevelUp announced an integration with Gusto Point of Sale, a vendor of Web, kiosk, and mobile technology for restaurants. Under a settlement between the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. and The Bancorp Bank, the prepaid card issuer is to pay a $2 million fine and nearly $1.3 …

The number of debit cards compromised at ATMs and merchant terminals increased 10% in the United States last year, according to antifraud-technology vendor FICO. Newtek Business Services Inc., owner of Newtek Merchant Solutions and Premier Payments LLC, says its payments unit processed $6.1 billion in volume last year. Point-of-sale terminal …

Payments provider Paysafe is the first reseller of VeriFone System Inc.’s Verifone Connect service among independent sales organizations, VeriFone announced Tuesday. Verifone Connect is a suite of point-of-sale services, such as payment acceptance, point-of-sale terminal management, and business-management tools, that works with VeriFone’s Carbon and Engage devices. London-based Paysafe is …

The cryptocurrency world often gets feverish upon news that an established power in payments or financial services has turned its attention to matters of Bitcoin or its cohorts. Such was the case Monday when reports surfaced that PayPal Holdings Inc. had applied for a patent for a so-called “expedited virtual …