Credit Cards

Cash is fighting an uphill battle to remain a payment option during the novel coronavirus pandemic. Over the past week, a number of toll-highway and bridge authorities have ceased accepting cash to limit the spread of the highly infectious disease. According to local press reports, the Pennsylvania Turnpike, the Illinois …

PayPal Holdings Inc. and Square Inc. are moving to increase hiring as consumers reportedly shift to mobile payments as a result of calls for social distancing.Arguing that “the [coronavirus] pandemic will pass, but the economic impact will last,” a collation of payroll processors and trade associations issued an open letter to President Donald …

With students not in school, the closure of restaurants and bars, and work-from-home edicts in place, consumer spending is shifting. Witness that in the week of March 9-15, the payment volume made with dipped EMV cards fell 5.17% from the week prior and mag-stripe volume fell 13.07%, according to the …

Chargeback Gurus released guidance on the potential for chargebacks as consumers and merchants contend with the effects of the coronavirus infection.Email-security firm Armorblox Inc. said it will provide its services free to companies with between 100 and 2,000 employees until April 30 to help guard against social-engineering attacks exploiting the Covid-19 pandemic.A cryptocurrency …

Electronic Payments Inc. said it will temporarily suspend the monthly support fees for its TableTurn and Exatouch Point of Sale products for three months.JPMorgan Chase & Co. is temporarily closing 1,000 of its bank branches, or 20% of its network, because of Covid-19, according to press reports. The remaining open branches will …

Payments providers are rallying support for small businesses, especially restaurants and hospitality merchants, contending with the effects of the coronavirus and urgent calls for social distancing. Just Tuesday, Nevada Governor Steve Sisolak ordered all casinos and other nonessential businesses, such as personal health and beauty businesses, to close for 30 days.  …

With the nation hunkering down to slow the spread of Covid-19, American Express Co. said Tuesday it expects its first-quarter revenues, adjusted for currency fluctuations, to grow only 2% to 4% year-over-year. In contrast, AmEx’s revenues net of interest expense rose 7% to $10.4 billion in 2019’s first quarter. In …

So, how much will Covid-19 have affected payment card dollar and transaction volumes when the card networks and merchant processors report their first-quarter financials beginning in about a month? At this point, it’s way too early to tell. An early read might come Tuesday when American Express Co. is scheduled …

Nacha’s Smarter Faster Payments 2020 Conference has been canceled because of concerns related to the novel coronavirus. Nacha said it is trying to develop a free virtual event with select educational content. Next year’s conference is scheduled for April 25-28 in San Francisco.Dueling bills have been introduced in the Delaware Legislature that would …

Airport restaurant and retail operator OTG Experience LLC says it will be one of the first retailers to use Amazon.com Inc.’s “Just Walk Out” cashierless technology, the system that powers Amazon’s Amazon Go stores, when it opens a CIBO Express Gourmet Market next week in Terminal C of Newark Liberty International Airport.A technology …