Digital Transactions Authoritative, insightful and timely information for payments professionals
TriMet, the transit agency for the Portland, Ore., region, said transit riders can now use its Hop Fastpass card in Apple Wallet and use their iPhones and Apple Watches to pay for fares on TriMet, C-TRAN, and Portland Streetcar lines. TriMet said Hop is the first transit fare to launch …
May, 2019
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22 May
Having Put out 20 Million Contactless Cards So Far, Chase Tackles New York Mass Transit
Two powerful forces for making contactless cards a routine feature of daily life are acceptance by mass-transit systems and backing from the biggest issuers. On Wednesday, that combination came into focus with an announcement from Visa Inc. that starting May 31 users of the 20 million contactless credit cards JPMorgan …
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22 May
Citgo Readies EMV at the Pump and other Digital Transactions News briefs from 5/22/19
Gilbarco Veeder-Root said Citgo Petroleum Corp. released its EMV-acceptance Passport software for Citgo retailers to use in the forecourt. With this release, Gilbarco Veeder-Root said more than 70% of its Passport customers have forecourt EMV software available as upgrades. At a payments conference sponsored by The American Bankers Association, the …
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21 May
Hedge Fund Takes 12% Stake in “Undervalued” USA Technologies
The beaten-down shares of vending-machine payments provider USA Technologies Inc. jumped nearly 15% Tuesday on news that a hedge fund had taken a 12% stake in the company. In a regulatory filing, New York City-based Hudson Executive Capital LP said it believes USAT’s “shares are undervalued and are an attractive …
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21 May
Cash Proves Resilient Even As Regulation to Ban Cashless Stores Builds Steam
With momentum building to ban cashless stores, a rough consensus seems to be emerging that the United States will never have the cashless society futurists have predicted for decades as first cards, then e-commerce, and now mobile payments took root. To be sure, research released Tuesday by Square Inc. shows …
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21 May
As U.S. Contactless Card Payments Ramp up, Canada and the U.K. Point the Way to Mass Adoption
Contactless payments account for only an estimated low-single-digit share of U.S. general-purchase credit and debit card transactions, but contactless has a much greater share of payments in Canada and the United Kingdom, recently released data show. Canada’s largest merchant acquirer, Toronto-based Moneris Solutions Corp., says that in the first quarter …
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21 May
Nxgen Makes Another Acquisition and other Digital Transactions News briefs from 5/21/19
Nxgen International Inc. acquired payments provider Payment Plus Inc. for an undisclosed amount. PPI will continue to grow its business in Kentucky and the Midwest, Nxgen said. Card-issuing platform Marqeta said it raised $260 million in Series E funding, placing the company’s value at almost $2 billion. Marqeta said the …
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20 May
First Data’s Volume Growth Slowed in the First Quarter, but Brick-and-Mortar Topped E-Commerce
First-quarter growth in leading merchant processor First Data Corp.’s portfolios lagged growth posted in the preceding two quarters, but in a rare event physical merchants posted higher sales increases than their online counterparts. In its latest SpendTrend report, First Data says total payment card spending at U.S. merchants on its …
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20 May
Are Digital Payments Killing ATMs? Some Researchers Say Yes, But the Debate Isn’t Closed
A report that emerged over the weekend showing a first-ever drop in the ATM count in four of the five largest ATM markets has lent new urgency to the debate over whether electronic payment methods are killing cash—and hence cash dispensers. The report, from London-based RBR, says the number of …
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20 May
BAMS Lands Sezzle and other Digital Transactions News briefs from 5/20/19
Sezzle, an online provider of installment loans to consumers, will use the Bank of America Merchant Services platform for digital card processing. Lavu, provider of mobile point-of-sale systems for restaurants and bars, certified three receipt printers from Epson America Inc. Lavu previously certified Epson’s Mobilink line of mobile receipt printers. …