Materialized cash projects its own integrity, allowing two strangers to exchange value and never know who they are dealing with. This two-way anonymity endows cash traders with a sense of dignity, privacy, and freedom. When money turned digital, this double anonymity was lost. So now, all your purchases are cataloged …

Apple Inc.’s new Apple Card is another push from the computing giant to move payments into a digital realm under Apple’s control, according to analysts. Apple last month announced the card, which bears a Mastercard Inc. brand and will be issued by Goldman Sachs Group Inc. The product, which eschews …

Fidelity National Information Services Inc. (FIS) on Tuesday said it expects to close its colossal $43 billion acquisition of payment processor Worldpay Inc. in the third quarter following a Federal Trade Commission ruling. The merger, announced in March, would create a processing colossus with payments services ranging from merchant processing, …

The conditions for the widespread adoption of contactless payments using chip cards are in place, asserts a new report from the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston. But when that will happen and what will trigger it are unknown in the Fed report, “Tap to Pay: Will Contactless Cards Pave the …

The bank-sponsored Zelle person-to-person payment service continued on its growth trajectory in the first quarter, with transaction volume up more than 70% and payment volume rising more than 50%. Zelle provider Early Warning Services LLC reported Wednesday that first-quarter payment volume hit $39 billion, a 54% increase from just over …

KeyBank said it has begun issuing contactless-enabled Mastercard credit and debit cards. Diebold Nixdorf Inc. said KeyBank will upgrade its network of 1,400 ATMs with Diebold’s DN Vynamic portfolio of software applications that includes ATM management and more options for customers, including selection of bill denominations. Payments provider CCBill LLC announced …

Visa Inc. announced Monday the debut of Visa Next, a platform for issuers and issuer-processors that enables such options as the ability to create new digital card accounts on demand and instantly activate and tokenize digital accounts for e-commerce and mobile-wallet use. Visa Next offers a series of application programming …

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 …

Coffee, doughnut, and breakfast sandwich aficionados can now pay with credit and debit cards and even cash and still earn points in Dunkin’ Brands Group Inc.’s DD Perks loyalty program at more than 1,000 test stores, Dunkin’ announced this week. DD Perks is one of the nation’s largest rewards programs, …

A federal judge has banned payments provider Priority Payout Corp. and its owner Thomas Wells from ever directly or indirectly working in the payment-processing industry following a violation of a 2009 settlement with the Federal Trade Commission. Announced last week, the ban, ordered by U.S. District Court Judge James C. …