Can any of the largest crypto coins evolve into an everyday payment instrument? Here’s what it will take to make that happen. One year ago, there were two digital currencies whose total coins in circulation were worth more than $1 billion. They were Bitcoin, at $19 billion, and Ethereum, at …

Wave-and-pay flopped when issuers tried it 10 years ago with mag-stripe cards. Now it’s staging a comeback with EMV and mobile payments. The sequel just might be better than the original, but showtime is uncertain. After years of false starts and overenthusiastic hopes, the U.S. just might be about to connect …

It might be time to think about the future of human intervention for e-commerce transactions, especially as criminal sophistication increases exponentially. The lifeblood of any retailer is ensuring that as many valid transactions are completed as possible. E-commerce merchants, in particular, will go to great trouble to validate as many …

As financial institutions move beyond mag-stripe payment cards, they face a crucial question: should we support mobile wallets, and if we do, should we also issue contactless cards? In the eyes of at least one observer, the answer is an unequivocal “yes” and “yes,” even though the former would seem …

In a mashup of the Internet of things and cryptocurrency, authentication and data-security firm WiseKey International Holding Ltd. announced Thursday that it has developed a payment service for IoT-connected devices and its own WiseCoin. Geneva, Switzerland-based WiseKey said it has tested the system, dubbed IoT CryptoCurrency Smart Payment, on a …

Another day, another data breach. But each one has lessons for the payments industry, and that includes the breach disclosed Tuesday by online travel-services provider Expedia Inc.’s Orbitz subsidiary. Hackers accessed one of Orbitz’s older systems and thereby may have exposed 880,000 payment card numbers on file, according to press …

With the introduction of transactional capability on smart watches and fitness trackers like the Apple Watch and Fitbit, the payments industry has eyed wearable devices as a field laden with potential for growth. Just how much growth came into focus this week with new figures and projections from International Data …

The PCI Security Standards Council is making changes to its qualified integrators and resellers certification program by reducing the fee to $100, making the certification an individual one, and shortening the training-course time, the council announced Wednesday. Launched in 2012, the QIR program’s focus has been on improving payments security for …

Merchants wondering whether it’s worth it to invest in improving the consumer experience on their mobile Web sites or mobile-shopping apps may want to consider the findings of Worldpay Inc.’s “Mobile Payment Journey” survey. In the survey, released this week, 37% of U.S. consumers said they would spend more for …

The Federal Reserve announced Thursday it is shutting down its Secure Payments Task Force this month. The Fed invited its more than 200 members, made up of payments executives from across the financial-services industry, to work with its FedPayments Improvement Community. Members may also participate in “new collaborative industry work …