• Money-transfer specialist Dwolla Inc. submitted a 164-page proposal for speedier electronic payments, dubbed FiSync, to the Federal Reserve’s Faster Payments Task Force. • Fuel-pump manufacturer Gilbarco Veeder-Root introduced its FlexPay IV, a payment terminal developed with VeriFone Systems Inc. that Gilbarco says is the industry’s first terminal for a …

Gift cards are the target of a crackdown in the first half of 2016. Next month, PayPal Holdings Inc. will no longer allow items equivalent to cash, including gift cards, to be covered by PayPal’s Seller Protection program for merchants. And prepaid card provider Blackhawk Network Holdings Inc. recently reported …

Wal-Mart Stores Inc. sued Visa Inc. on Tuesday claiming that Visa is trying to make the retailer use signature verification for some EMV debit card transactions and route those transactions over Visa’s network rather than Wal-Mart’s preferred PIN-debit networks. The suit, filed in New York State Supreme Court in Manhattan, …

For merchants these days, laying hands on a payment terminal with the needed EMV certifications is hard enough. Finding a certified device with built-in intelligence is even harder. Against that backdrop, a Palo Alto, Calif.-based startup called Poynt Co. on Thursday announced its Poynt Smart Terminal is the first such …

• Retailer Kohl’s says customers can now pay for purchases using their Kohl’s Charge accounts and earn points in its Yes2You Rewards program in approximately 250 stores with a single tap using Apple Pay. Kohl’s expects national availability later this month. Kohl’s says it is the first retailer to offer a …

With its contested annual shareholder meeting coming up in less than three weeks, embattled Green Dot Corp. chief executive Steve Streit on Wednesday said the prepaid card card and mobile-banking provider and tax-payment processor’s prospects are improving as key measures of customer activity strengthen. Pasadena, Calif.-based Green Dot reported first-quarter …

MasterCard Inc. expects the first wearable payment devices for use on its network to be available later this year, Sherri Haymond, senior vice president for digital payments for MasterCard, tells Digital Transactions News. The devices are part of MasterCard’s Commerce for Every Device Program, which is intended to add payment …

• Imaging applications developer Mitek Systems Inc. said its Mobile Deposit service has processed more than 1 billion check deposits; more than 5,000 U.S. financial institutions and 70 million of their customers use Mobile Deposit. • Payments company Zooz closed on $24 million in funding that it will use for growth, …

Our list this year showcases some of the most interesting innovation going on in payments. As we put together this year’s Guide, we were struck by the sheer breadth of innovation the 37 entries that made this year’s list represent. Yes, much of this technology has to do with mobile …

Chargebacks stemming from the EMV liability shift are bedeviling merchants, and some of them are turning to the courts for relief. That could change the way EMV plays out in the United States. Max Milam thought his stores were ready for EMV chip cards. His four Milam’s Market grocery stores …