Installations of mobile point-of-sale devices in the United States and Canada will hit 17.4 million in four years, forecasts 451 Research in its “Mobile Point of Sale: Smart Devices Earn a Growing Share of Global Payment Acceptance” report released Thursday. If it proves accurate, that forecast will yield a 155.9% …

Nine months after its launch, Apple Pay appears to be steadily establishing itself as an everyday service for consumers wielding iPhone 6 and 6 Plus smart phones. These users are increasing the frequency of their Apple Pay transactions as more consumers adopt the Apple Inc. device. That’s the summary of …

Square Inc.’s future may include public ownership if reports late last week that it filed for a confidential initial public offering are correct. Both BloombergBusiness and The Wall Street Journal reported the filing, permitted under the Jumpstart Our Business Startups (JOBS) Act, which enables companies with less than $1 billion …

What will it take to get small businesses to accept EMV payment cards? Apparently $50 in fraud charges will motivate 32% of them to install EMV-capable point-of-sale terminals. That’s the finding from a survey released Thursday by Cayan, a Boston-based payments company. While 32% said $50 when asked what amount …

Prepaid provider InComm Holdings Inc. and smart card maker Gemalto NV have devised a new service that enables mobile-wallet providers and merchants to offer and accept prepaid cards loaded onto near-field communication (NFC)-equipped smart phones. The InComm Mobile Platform uses Gemalto’s technology—namely its Trusted Service Hub for the interconnectivity, data …

  Only 42% of consumers would consider or have already bought wearable technology. That’s one result from a Bank of America Corp. survey of more than 1,000 U.S. adults. Wearables garner much attention because of their mobile-payments capabilities. These devices—mostly watches—enable consumers to make mobile payments without using a smart …

  Biometrics will be the secure authentication mechanism for 65% of all mobile-commerce transactions in five years. That’s the forecast from Acuity Marketing Intelligence, a Denver-based research firm, in its “The Global Biometrics and Mobility Report: The Convergence of Commerce and Privacy” report released last week. The forecast says this will …

First Data Corp. has added another digital gift card company to its portfolio with the purchase announced Tuesday of Transaction Wireless Inc., a digital gift card distribution company. The purchase of San Diego-based Transaction Wireless complements First Data’s 2014 deal to buy Gyft, a digital platform that enables consumers buy, …

PayPal Inc.’s plans to include three payment technologies—magnetic stripe, contactless, and EMV—in its upcoming mobile point-of-sale device could help the payments company capitalize on growing interest in mobile wallets. Many companies are betting on mobile wallets. But part of the ante is ensuring consumers can use their stored credit and …

Retailers, especially larger ones, face a contradiction: they know they need to update their point-of-sale systems to take advantage of new technologies and consumer-shopping behavior, yet most resist that urge because of the expense. That’s one of the findings from “Commerce Convergence: Closing the Gap Between Online and In-Store,” a …