Facebook Inc. chief executive Mark Zuckerberg told stock analysts this week that although advertising will continue to be the primary contributor to revenue, the company plans to add more commerce functions on Instagram, Facebook, and Facebook Marketplace, including features that let users buy products directly through the platforms. Instagram has …

Mobile-authentication technology provider Payfone Inc. raised $24 million in a funding round led by credit-reporting agency TransUnion with participation from previous investor Synchrony Financial and two institutional investors. TransUnion said it will integrate Payfone’s Trust Platform and Trust Score with its identity products, and become Payfone’s primary partner for regulated …

Mastercard Inc. announced contactless-payment capability will go live in 20 U.S. cities “within the next few years,” starting with subway and bus systems later this year in New York City, where the company is working with transit-technology firm Cubic Transportation Systems. Bitmo, a startup that offers mobile gift cards that …

So-called shoppable ads could get a big boost if a tap-and-buy test announced Tuesday by Facebook Inc.’s Instagram social network succeeds, a test in which PayPal Holdings Inc. is the payment processor. Other social networks and Internet sites have rolled out or begun testing shoppable ads, including Pinterest, Snap Inc.’s …

Repay Holdings LLC said its 2018 payment volume increased 42% to $7.5 billion from $5.2 billion in 2017. Its net income increased 12% to $10.5 million from $9.4 million. Repay is in the midst of a pending merger with Thunder Bridge Acquisition Ltd. Net Element Inc. unit Unified Payments will …

Staying on top in payments requires close attention to a few ironclad rules, say Saurabh Wahi and Davis Ward. In the fourth annual Prophet Brand Relevance Index (BRI), PayPal Holdings Inc. was once again, and by far, the best-performing financial-services brand. It’s not just that it continues to outperform such …

PayPal’s octopus-like strategy covers everything from P2P payments, bill pay, and the point of sale to parting ways with eBay. Can Schulman and Co. keep all the balls in the air? PayPal Holdings Inc. president and chief executive Dan Schulman can’t be accused of making small plans. “We aspire to …

The use of chatbots in financial services is about to explode, if research released this week is any indication. Adoption will be such that the technology will save banks worldwide $7.3 billion in annual operating costs by 2023, compared to a projected $209 million this year, estimates Juniper Research in …

Speed is a key selling point for person-to-person payments, but many P2P users aren’t taking advantage of real-time payment capabilities offered by their providers, according to research firm Aite Group LLC. Answers from 693 consumers who had used a digital P2P account to receive money in the 12 months ending …

While one cannot deny the rise of social commerce and its pertinence to the overarching e-commerce industry, studies have shown that social-commerce strategies do not lead to as many purchases as you may think.  For example, Twitter recently phased out a buy button because it wasn’t seeing results, and another …