American Express Co. released SafeKey 2.0, an online authentication tool that uses the EMVCo 3-D Secure 2.0 standard. The service will be available in spring 2018. Payline Data Services LLC announced that payment-processing technology company Pineapple Payments purchased Payline Data for an undisclosed amount. Payline Data has almost 10,000 merchants processing …

Facebook Inc. has joined Visa Inc.’s Digital Enablement Program, giving the social-networking giant access to tokenization services globally. First Data Corp. said it will add UnionPay International acceptance to its merchant network, enabling UnionPay cardholders traveling as tourists in the United States to use their cards in stores and online. Eventually, …

First Data Corp. made it official: it is acquiring merchant processor BluePay Holdings Inc. for $760 million in cash. BluePay processes $19 billion annually for 77,000 merchants and is integrated into more than 450 software platforms. The deal is expected to close by the end of the year. First Data inadvertently …

PayPal Holdings Inc. has been talking for more than a year about allowing users of its popular Venmo person-to-person payments app to use the app to pay merchants. On Tuesday, the payments company threw the door wide open for Venmo, announcing it can now be used to pay at as …

Fuel-payments specialist P97 Networks and Buy It Mobility Networks, an automated clearing house-based payment and consumer-engagement provider, said they will provide ACH-based payment and related services to Phillips 66, Conoco, and 76-branded fuel stations. In 2016, P97 said it was working with Chase Pay on a payments service for Phillips …

The Federal Reserve released the names of 27 payments-industry executives who will serve on a work group focused on developing a governance framework for faster payments in the United States. Fifty-five percent of U.S. credit and debit card spend is now on chip cards and 96% of the top 200 …

American Express Co. announced its Business Loans service that will provide unsecured loans of $3,500 to $50,000 for small businesses; holders of AmEx business cards can apply online and receive a decision in as little as 60 seconds, AmEx said. ProPay, a merchant-acquiring subsidiary of processor Total System Services Inc. …

There are plenty of opportunities for payments providers—if they play the game right, say Rick Oglesby and Brad Margol. Major retailers fear business disruption from Apple Inc., Facebook Inc., and Google/Alphabet, but they are already locked in head-to-head competition with Amazon.com Inc., and Amazon is clearly winning. It has climbed …

There are still many unknowns, but siding and the roof are on order for the frame of the Federal Reserve’s faster-payments project. That’s the message conveyed Tuesday by Fed officials and payments-industry executives who participated in a years-long effort to speed up U.S. electronic payments as well as make them …

Consumer affinity for the cheapest gas prices birthed smart-phone app GasBuddy, and now the app has sired a way for consumers to actually make the payment at fill up. Boston-based GasBuddy recently announced its Pay with GasBuddy service, which connects a consumer’s checking account with a GasBuddy-issued card. After enrolling …