Cryptocurrency remains far from mainstream payments, but it keeps edging closer in the United States and worldwide. Further evidence emerged early Friday with news that the money-transfer platform MoneyGram International Inc. has launched MoneyGram Ramps, an application programming interface aimed at easing crypto-based transfers. Simultaneously, a crypto app called Bitget …

The payments industry may soon be wrestling with the fallout from the upcoming $35-billion merger of Capital One Financial Corp. and Discover Financial Services, and one key question emerging from the deal is how it will affect Mastercard, the network for Cap One’s credit and debit cards. Early on Thursday, …

PayPal Holdings Inc. recorded a tepid 1% growth rate in revenue in the first quarter, with overall transaction revenue flat, but the company’s stress on branded checkout appears to be yielding more optimistic results, the company reported early Tuesday. PayPal is also building up its cryptocurrency business and beginning a …

In keeping with Washington’s friendlier attitude toward cryptocurrencies, the Federal Reserve and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. on Thursday pulled statements they had issued early in 2023 that had indicated a tougher stance on crypto regulation for banks. The regulators’ new approach, as indicated in a statement issued late Thursday …

Fiserv Inc.’s Clover point-of-sale technology is set to make a splash in the highly competitive restaurant market with the expected launch next month of Clover Hospitality, the company’s top brass said early Thursday. Lilia, an Italian eatery in Brooklyn, is the first client, said Michael Lyons, the company’s chief executive, …

The stablecoin platform Circle Internet Group Inc. late Monday unveiled a payments network aimed at linking financial institutions and digital wallets for cross-border payments. The network, which will enable real-time settlement using what Circle calls regulated stablecoins, represents a major new thrust for the 11-year-old, New York City-based company into …

Top management at American Express Co. early Thursday said the card company’s deal for Center ID Corp., a developer of expense-management software, falls into an overarching strategy to build and reinforce ties with small businesses following years in which AmEx was known for catering to the needs of major firms. …

In a dual announcement, Fiserv Inc. and Klarna AB said late Tuesday they plan to collaborate on offering Klarna’s installment-credit service through Fiserv’s popular Clover point-of-sale devices, starting with more than 100,000 U.S. merchant locations. An expansion of the rollout to more merchants is planned for early next year, the …

Block Inc. has been ordered to pay a $40-million fine to the state of New York for what the state’s regulator on Thursday called “significant failures in its Bank Secrecy Act/Anti-Money Laundering compliance program, which violated the [New York Department of Financial Services’ money transmitter and virtual currency regulations.”  The …

Sweeping regulation that would have impacted all major mobile-payment apps in the United States appears to be headed for the dustbin following action by the House of Representatives Wednesday to vote down a bill based on regulation from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. The House action follows a Senate vote …