Person-to-Person Payments

Bank of America Corp. next year will enhance Erica, its popular digital financial assistant powered by artificial intelligence, with two new features—one to make its credit and debit card holders aware of which merchants might be storing their card numbers, and another that will issue alerts about possible duplicate charges. …

Visa Inc. is working fast to expand its foothold in cross-border remittances, a relatively new market for the card network. On Wednesday, MoneyGram International Inc. announced it is the first remittance service to allow international transfers that rely on Visa Direct, a push-payment service that enables real-time transfers to holders …

The Accredited Standards Committee X9 Inc., which sets standards for financial services, said it has restarted its X9F5 working group, the committee that developed the original standards underpinning public key infrastructure (PKI). The new group will work on new PKI standards that will address needs in the financial-services industry apart from …

Following up on a $30-million investment in June, blockchain-services provider Ripple Labs Inc. has made another $20-million equity investment in wire-transfer provider MoneyGram International Inc., making Ripple the owner of nearly 10% of MoneyGram’s common stock. Announced Monday, the new investment is no surprise. The companies indicated in June it …

Processor Fidelity National Information Services Inc. (FIS) announced it has integrated IBM Corp.’s Safer Payments tool for its peer-to-peer payments products. Safer Payments relies on artificial intelligence and machine learning to sift through transactions for signs of fraud.Catch Hospitality Group, which operates the Catch NYC and Catch Steak restaurants, said it discovered malware on …

The Church’s Chicken restaurant chain said it is investigating a possible breach of credit and debit card data at about 165 company-owned locations in 11 states. The company, which said it is working with federal authorities, has hired a cybersecurity firm and has notified the card networks and credit-reporting agencies.Recurring household bills …

PayPal Holdings Inc. is betting big on its strategy of boosting its e-commerce presence with its approximately $4 billion acquisition of Honey Science Corp., a technology platform that helps consumers find offers and deals on popular e-commerce sites. Announced Wednesday afternoon, the deal envisions Honey tapping into the more than …

The Federal Trade Commission has started a preliminary inquiry into whether Visa Inc., Mastercard Inc., and large debit card issuers are blocking merchants from routing transactions over PIN-debit networks, the Bloomberg Law news service reported, citing anonymous sources. FTC investigators reportedly have contacted merchants and their trade groups, Bloomberg Law said. Spokespersons for …

As peer-to-peer payments services like Cash App, Venmo, and Zelle grow in popularity in the United States, some observers fret that underserved populations are being left behind. PayPal Holdings Inc.’s Xoom money-transfer service said Tuesday it’s attacking that issue in a collaboration with Walmart Inc. and Euronet Worldwide Inc.’s Ria remittance …

U.S. District Judge Margo K. Brodie heard final arguments from lawyers Thursday on the fairness of a proposed settlement in the 14-year-old MDL 1720 credit card interchange case but, as attorneys involved in the case said was probable, did not make an immediate determination from the bench. Brodie in January gave preliminary …