Transaction Processing

With Bitcoin priced near $18,000 Friday morning, and with futures markets already trading Bitcoin contracts or getting set to, investors in the digital currency are riding high. Consumers who want to use Bitcoin to buy things, though, face a market rife with volatility, slow transactions, and high costs. Bitcoin exchanges …

E-commerce platform Magento Inc. announced Instant Purchase, its new one-click payment feature that is now standard on its Magento Commerce system. For merchants, Instant Purchase offers a customizable button, a mobile-optimized process that Campbell, Calif.-based Magento says can reduce time-to-purchase by 90%, automatic shipping to the shopper’s default address, and …

Seven retail trade groups filed a joint amicus brief in a case now before the U.S. Supreme Court in which 11 states, led by Ohio, are appealing a U.S. Court of Appeals decision that upholds American Express Co.’s rule prohibiting merchants from steering customers to cards with lower acceptance costs. …

Subscription-management platform provider Recurly Inc. reported Thursday that it will use international multi-channel payments provider Adyen to further expand its business abroad. Founded in 2010, San Francisco-based Recurly already operates in 32 countries. Its customers are businesses that use recurring-revenue models, including media and publishing firms, software-as-a-service providers, and others. …

Santa Claus might be relaxing on Dec. 25, but criminals targeting online merchants with stolen credit and debit cards won’t be taking the day off. That’s evident from Stripe Inc.’s latest report on online fraud trends and behavior. Released this week, the report, which examines an undisclosed number of transactions made …

Wider availability of technology that would have been nearly unthinkable only a few years ago is making biometric authentication a more likely replacement for the password. In the latest development, Discover Financial Services on Thursday announced users of its mobile app who own an iPhone X can log in to …

Payrange Inc., a developer of mobile-payment applications for washers, dryers, and other machines, introduced its product for Speed Queen and Maytag laundry machines. Subscription-management platform provider Recurly Inc. said it will use international payments provider Adyen to further expand its global business. Cornerstone Bank became the 200th financial institution to …

7-Eleven Inc. announced it is testing online ordering for delivery or pickup on its new 7-ElevenNOW mobile app at 10 downtown and uptown stores in Dallas. The convenience-store chain expects to begin rolling out the app to other stores in 2018. Payments provider Clearent LLC said it received validation of …

The seemingly unending growth in online shopping is doing more than closing physical stores. The point of sale in the stores that remain is changing, and along with it, payments providers, says Javelin Strategy & Research in its “2017-2021 Retail Point of Sale Payment Forecast.” As consumers continue to increase …

Mastercard Inc. launched Assemble, a prepaid service aimed at Millennials that features a digital prepaid account, a mobile app, and a physical or digital card. The service also includes budgeting capability and peer-to-peer payments through Mastercard Send. The company says it plans to extend versions of Assemble to other markets, …