At the end of July came an opening for nonbank payments players that, as the old expression goes, you could drive a Mack truck through. And it’s our guess that we’ll be hearing much more about this opening—and about how financial-technology firms and other nonbanks are exploiting it—for quite some …

Merchant processor Payment Data Systems Inc. said its FiCentive prepaid card subsidiary will provide program management and processing and develop Web and mobile applications for University Fancards, which offers university-branded gift and reloadable prepaid cards. Speedpay Inc., Western Union’s bill-payment unit, has adopted a customer-guidance tool based on artificial intelligence …

Worldnet TPS Ltd. launched GoChipNow, a service for virtual-terminal merchants to convert to EMV chip card acceptance. VSoft Corp., which specializes in information-technology products for financial institutions, said it will integrate a payment service from Payrailz into its digital banking platform. Total investment in startups specializing in artificial intelligence, an …

Online-shopping site jClub Inc. said its customers can check out with a single click on mobile or desktop devices using the Google Pay button. Google Pay is a 3-year-old mobile-payment service from Alphabet Inc.’s Google unit. Facing growing concerns about privacy protections on its popular Venmo person-to-person payments service, executives …

Finalsite, a marketing and communication platform for the education industry, launched Finalsite Payments by integrating BlueSnap’s Payments for Platforms service. Fiserv Inc. introduced enhanced authentication techniques specifically aimed at call-center fraud. Mercator Advisory Group Inc. released its “U.S. Faster Payments Forecast, 2017-2021, Update: The Consequences of Faster Payments” research report. …

Financial institutions have been battling fast-growing fintechs and other nonbanks for payments share and revenue for years, but now new research indicates banks, which have historically controlled this crucial business, are on the cusp of slipping from that dominant perch. In 2017, U.S. banks’ total payments revenue netted out to …

Shell Oil Co. and General Motors Inc. announced Shell stations across the United States now accept in-dash fuel payments following tests earlier this year. Shell Pay & Save, available within the GM Marketplace on certain Chevrolet, Buick, GMC, and Cadillac vehicles, enables consumers to pay for fuel and earn and …

The escalating U.S.-China trade war is generating calls for a truce from the payments industry. Most recently, the ATM Industry Association announced its opposition to planned U.S. tariffs on Chinese goods, calling them a “threat to business.” ATMIA members are expected to testify at a tariff hearing next week in …

Green Dot Corp. executives played up their “banking-as-a-service” platform Wednesday as the company reported strong second-quarter growth in most of its business lines, but they said little about the support they provide for Apple Inc.’s Apple Pay Cash service. Pasadena, Calif.-based Green Dot supplies the virtual prepaid card that customers …

Will Square Inc. apply for a national banking charter, now that the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency has opened the door to financial-technology firms? As of late Wednesday, the answer remains unclear. “We’re really well-positioned to broaden access to the financial system, which is our core purpose,” said …