Payment processor Total System Services Inc. (TSYS) on Thursday unveiled a line of point-of-sale terminals and services for small and mid-size businesses, and took its Vital brand out of a 13-year retirement as the name for the new product suite. The cloud-based Vital POS has three major components: Vital Mobile, an …
Read More »COMMENTARY: Why Cryptocurrencies Are a Solution in Search of a Problem
When you look at the benefits that cryptocurrencies offer, it’s somewhat surprising that they aren’t an established method of payment yet. They are cheaper than other payment methods, they allow fast global money transfer, and they provide built-in security and encryption. However, cryptocurrencies haven’t really taken off and are more …
Read More »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. …
Read More »A Look Back at 2018’s 10 Most Popular Digital Transactions Posts
Fraud, acquisitions, and interchange dominated the top 10 list of news articles posted to DigitalTransactions.net in 2018. Starting with a $6.2 billion pact between Visa Inc. and Mastercard Inc., on one hand, and defendant banks, on the other, stemming from 13-year-old litigation over credit card interchange, to American Express Co.’s …
Read More »Net Element Adds Cash Flow From Portfolio Acquisitions and other Digital Transactions News briefs from 12/27/18
A subsidiary of Visa Inc. is offering to buy Earthport PLC, a London-based provider of cross-border payments for banks and businesses, for approximately $250 million in cash. The offer represents a 250% premium to Earthport’s six-month average share price ended Dec. 24 and has the endorsement of Earthport’s board of …
Read More »COMMENTARY: For Merchants, Much Has Been Accomplished, Much Is Yet To Be Done
Merchants have come a long way since the inception of the Merchant Advisory Group, but far more needs to be done to restore some semblance of balance in payments. Upon reflection, it is remarkable that traditional merchants had no formal means to get together to discuss payments until the MAG …
Read More »Fast-Growing Merchant Acceptance Could Entice More Acquirers to Look Abroad
A number of U.S. payments providers have expanded overseas in recent years, and now more may have an incentive to do so if recent research showing robust growth in merchant acceptance is any indication. The number of physical stores or outlets accepting payment cards worldwide reached 69.2 million last year, …
Read More »Government Releases Report on Campus Prepaid Card and Deposit-Account Fees
A report from the U.S. Department of Education shows that fees college students pay for campus-sponsored prepaid cards and deposit accounts can vary widely. The report was prepared by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau for the Education Department and completed in February, but not released until Friday. The release came …
Read More »With Convenience Stores in Mind, NRS Adds a Silent Alarm to Its POS System
Merchants using the point-of-sale system from National Retail Solutions Inc. soon will have the ability to use a potentially crime-thwarting value-add feature. The Newark, N.J.-based company is adding a silent alarm feature to its POS system. Expected to be available by the end of the first quarter, the feature involves …
Read More »European Merchants Would Pay 40% Less to Accept U.S.-Issued Cards Under Visa-Mastercard Proposals
European merchants could see their costs to accept Visa Inc. and Mastercard Inc. payment cards issued outside of Europe decline by 40% under separate proposals submitted by the two leading card networks to settle competition concerns raised by European Union antitrust authorities. The European Commission, the administrative arm of the …
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