Digital Transactions Authoritative, insightful and timely information for payments professionals
Point-of-sale terminal maker VeriFone Systems Inc. saw a nearly 20% increase in its fourth-quarter North American revenues as U.S. merchants continued to prepare for Europay-MasterCard-Visa (EMV) chip card acceptance. Looking forward, the company is getting ready to introduce major new products in fiscal 2015, a year chief executive Paul Galant …
December, 2014
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12 December
Criminals Only Half the Problem When It Comes to Passwords: Report
Consumer behavior poses just as much of a threat to the proper use of passwords as do the actions of criminals intent on cracking those passwords. That’s the assessment of a new report from Javelin Strategy & Research, a Pleasanton, Calif.-based consulting firm. The “In Search Of A Better …
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12 December
While Bitcoin Spending Fell Short, Overstock’s Byrne Remains Bullish for the Future
When it comes to Bitcoin, no major merchant has more experience with the digital currency than e-commerce giant Overstock.com, which has been accepting it since Jan. 9. Now, with nearly a year of experience under its belt, the retailer will close out 2014 with about $3 million in Bitcoin sales, …
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12 December
House Report Criticizes the FDIC’s Alleged Attempts To Shut Out Disfavored Merchants
A U.S. House of Representatives committee released a report this week blasting the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. for its role in Operation Choke Point, a federal-government effort to deny payment-processing services to merchants intent on defrauding consumers. The report is one more nail in what appears to be a coffin …
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11 December
Apple Users Seem ‘More Engaged’ Than Android Users As Banks Find Not All Mobile Is Equal
By John Stewart While payments executives are abuzz about how mobile devices are transforming the business, they are slowly coming to realize that not all mobile users—and certainly not all mobile devices—are equal when it comes to such metrics as the average value of payments and rate of usage. The …
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11 December
United To Use iPhones as Payment Terminals on Flights
United Airlines is equipping more than 23,000 flight attendants with Apple Inc.’s iPhone 6 Plus smart phone to be used as a payment-acceptance device on flights. Distribution of the devices is expected to begin in the second quarter. United says the devices will be able to handle most onboard …
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11 December
With Direct Service, Dwolla Streamlines Payments to Persons Without Dwolla Accounts
Dwolla Inc. has entered the race to simplify—and ultimately speed up—payments between individuals and between organizations and individuals. Starting Thursday, the 6-year-old Des Moines, Iowa-based payments provider is allowing people who don’t have Dwolla accounts to receive payments from Dwolla users and flow them directly into their bank account. The …
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10 December
Gift Card Sales To Surpass $124 Billion in 2014
Gift cards sales in 2014 will top $124 billion in the United States, but that comes amid slowing growth, says a new report from CEB TowerGroup. The Arlington, Va.-based advisory firm predicts that gift card sales will see annual growth rates from 5% to 6% through 2017, an indication …
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10 December
Discover Forecasts $35 Million in 2015 EMV Costs and Is ‘Open for Business’ in Mobile Payments
Discover Financial Services expects to incur $35 million in incremental costs next year for Europay-MasterCard-Visa chip card issuance and acceptance, chief executive David W. Nelms said Wednesday. Nelms also said Discover will be an active player in mobile payments. Nelms made his remarks at an investor conference sponsored by The …
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10 December
Gateway Charge Anywhere Discloses a Breach Affecting Undisclosed Number of Credit and Debit Cards
Chalk another payment-card data breach up for the bad guys. Payment gateway Charge Anywhere LLC announced Tuesday it discovered a breach of its payments network. It says it has shut down the malware that caused it. South Plainfield, N.J.-based Charge Anywhere said the malicious software, which was discovered Sept. …