News

January, 2019

• 8 January

  New York Credit Card Surcharges Get a Green Light as Merchants and the State Agree To Dismiss Lawsuit

  

  Merchant plaintiffs and the state of New York filed motions Tuesday in a federal appellate court to dismiss the merchants’ challenge to New York’s law banning credit card surcharges. As a result, surcharges will be allowed when the merchant posts total prices for credit card purchases in dollars and cents. …
• 8 January

  Visa Teams Up With SiriusXM in the Latest Connected-Car Development

  

  The new year is only a week old, but it’s already looking to be a strong one for dashboard payments. On Monday, Visa Inc. and SiriusXM Connected Vehicles Services Inc. said they plan to offer the SiriusXM e-wallet to auto manufacturers that deploy SiriusXM’s connected-vehicle services.  The Visa-SiriusXM announcement followed …
• 8 January

  Paya Makes Another Integrated-Payments Play With a Deal for First Billing Services

  

  Paya Inc. said on Tuesday is has acquired First Billing Services, a Dayton, Ohio-based billing processor for municipalities, utilities, and multifamily housing units. The $57.5 million deal, which Paya chief executive Jeff Hack says was consummated minutes before midnight on New Year’s Eve, represents the Reston, Va.-based payments provider’s second …
• 7 January

  Phillips 66 Links With Honda in a Push for Dashboard Commerce

  

  Phillips 66 Co., which has long been a leading player among petroleum companies in digital payments, has taken a step into in-car commerce in a tie-up with Honda Motor Co. Inc. that will allow customers to find the nearest station, claim a pump, and pay for gas from the infotainment …
• 7 January

  The Name-Dropping Network: Mastercard Erases Its Name From Its Logo

  

  At first glance, a press released headlined “Mastercard Drops Its Name” might lead one to believe Mastercard will be the anonymous payment network going forward. But no, Mastercard Inc. is simply removing its name from its familiar interlocking circles logo, the company announced Monday. The name-drop marks the second time …
• 7 January

  BlueSnap Integrates Google Pay and other Digital Transactions News briefs from 1/7/19

  

  Payments provider BlueSnap said it has integrated Google Pay into its platform for payments from online, mobile checkout, marketplaces, invoices, and virtual terminals. In related news, cross-border payments provider Flow also announced it is adopting Google Pay as payment option. Mobile-parking app provider ParkWhiz Inc. has rebranded itself as Arrive Inc. FICO said it has been awarded five …
• 4 January

  The Unicorn Herd Enrolled Yet More Fintech Members Last Year Following an Active 2017

  

  The financial news has been full of dire stories about the beating tech stocks have been taking lately, but less well publicized is the action in private equity—specifically the creation of new payments-related unicorns. According to data from New York City-based CB Insights, which tracks private valuations, at least half …
• 4 January

  Marriott Updates Breach Numbers, Says 354,000 Unexpired Cards Compromised

  

  Hotel operator and franchisor Marriott International Inc. reported Friday that 8.6 million encrypted payment card records were compromised in the big data breach it disclosed Nov. 30. Of those, 354,000 cards were unexpired. The card statistics are included in an update Bethesda, Md.-based Marriott issued about the breach of the …
• 4 January

  Mitek Notes More Suitors and other Digital Transactions News briefs from 1/4/19

  

  Remote deposit capture software provider Mitek Systems Inc. said in a regulatory filing “that it has received expressions of interest from multiple parties” and thus is considering various “strategic alternatives” to maximize shareholder value. The only suitor the filing identified is ASG Technologies Group Inc., a portfolio company of the …
• 3 January

  Processor Stocks Eke Out a 2018 Gain Despite a Bloody Fourth Quarter

  

  It was a nasty December and fourth quarter, but transaction-processor stocks still beat the major market indexes in 2018, according to an analysis by Barrington Research Associates Inc. Twenty-six publicly traded processor stocks posted a mean return of 3.01% for the year versus a negative mean return of 6.24% for …