Digital Currency

Sezzle, an online provider of installment loans to consumers, will use the Bank of America Merchant Services platform for digital card processing. Lavu, provider of mobile point-of-sale systems for restaurants and bars, certified three receipt printers from Epson America Inc. Lavu previously certified Epson’s Mobilink line of mobile receipt printers. …

Automatic Labs Inc., a unit of SiriusXM, announced its Connected Car Assistant is available at major retailers nationwide for $99.99. The product, which consists of an app and an adapter, allows drivers to pay road tolls, among other connected-car functions. Revel Systems Inc. completed the installation of its cloud-based iPad …

Bank of America Corp. is considering not renewing its merchant-acquiring joint venture with First Data Corp., known as Bank of America Merchant Services, when the contract ends in June 2020, The Wall Street Journal reported, citing unnamed sources. BAMS is the nation’s third-largest acquirer, having processed $840 billion in payment …

Facebook Inc. reportedly is planning a cryptocurrency-based payment system using a digital coin with stable value that would enable the social-networking giant to avoid fees it incurs for conventional card payments, according to a report in The Wall Street Journal cited by the Associated Press. The report says Facebook is …

Facebook Inc. chief executive Mark Zuckerberg told stock analysts this week that although advertising will continue to be the primary contributor to revenue, the company plans to add more commerce functions on Instagram, Facebook, and Facebook Marketplace, including features that let users buy products directly through the platforms. Instagram has …

The pending acquisitions of two leading merchant processors by two leading core financial-institution processors are a “good thing,” Visa Inc. chief executive Alfred F. Kelly Jr. said Wednesday.  “We’ve got very good relationships and a lot of history with all four of these players,” according to Kelly. His comments came …

Blockchain startup Bleumi Inc. announced Tuesday it has launched two services, Bleumi Pay and Bleumi Invoice, for cross-border remittances. Bleumi Pay, a gateway that works with so-called stablecoins to avoid the price volatility afflicting cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin. The gateway will allow businesses and merchants to receive payments via Web site, …

Not all security breaches are designed to steal data. Instead, an increasing number these days are programmed to hold data hostage. And the sums demanded by the malefactors behind so-called ransomware attacks are rising fast. The average ransom in the first quarter came to $12,762, up 89% just from the …

Allied Irish Banks p.l.c. and processor First Data Corp. formed a joint venture to acquire a 96% stake in Payzone, operator of Ireland’s largest retail payment network, for about €100 million ($112.5 million) including debt. AIB will own 75% of the joint venture and First Data 25%, according to The Irish …

Ahead of a major push for EMV chip card payments at fuel pumps, some 62% of U.S. adults are concerned about the security of their financial data when making payments at fuel pumps or convenience stores, according to a March survey of 1,270 adults conducted by YouGov and released Monday …