Some 33 consumer and public-policy groups sent a letter Tuesday to five Congressional committees and federal regulators asking for a moratorium on the Facebook Inc.-backed Libra cryptocurrency. “We call on Congress and regulators to impose a moratorium on Facebook’s Libra and related plans until the profound questions raised by the …

Facebook Inc. has said it will turn over control of its Libra cryptocurrency initiative to a consortium of companies that will constitute the Libra Association. But one related property the massive social network will retain, albeit as an arm’s-length subsidiary, is its new Calibra unit, which will run Facebook’s own …

Its long-term prospects for success are unclear, but the investment and cross-border payments partnership struggling wire-transfer provider MoneyGram International Inc. announced late Monday with blockchain-services developer Ripple Labs Inc. certainly produced a short-term bang by doubling the value of MoneyGram’s beaten-down stock. As part of the deal, Ripple invested $30 …

Circle Internet Financial Ltd. will cease supporting its 5-year-old Circle Pay mobile app beginning next month in order to concentrate on its blockchain and cryptocurrency ventures. Circle Pay is a no-fee peer-to-peer payments app that enables users to send money using the recipient’s phone number or email address. The service …

At least four payments companies are set to participate in a consortium formed by Facebook Inc. to launch a cryptocurrency next year aimed at commerce rather than exchange trading, according to a report Friday in The Wall Street Journal. Facebook is expected to officially announce the initiative next week. The …

Visa Inc. on Tuesday furthered its ambitions to expand beyond card payments with the commercial launch of a cross-border network that leverages blockchain technology to help manage business-to-business transfers. The network, called Visa B2B Connect, starts out with coverage of more than 30 so-called global trade corridors and plans to …

Private-equity firm Acuity Capital Partners LLC acquired specialty gift card manufacturer Sterling Card Solutions, according to Sterling’s financial advisor, the investment bank Capstone Headwaters. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. Besides gift cards, Sterling makes hotel key cards, identification cards, phone cards, and other products. Half the world’s population, …

The Electronic Transactions Association sent letters to Congress and the Canadian Parliament urging lawmakers to ratify the pending U.S.-Mexico-Canada trade agreement (USMCA) that would replace the North American Free Trade Agreement. Among other things, the USMCA reflects “the importance of data, technology, and innovation,” and would bar any country from …

AT&T Communications said on Thursday that starting now it will accept bill payment in cryptocurrency, making it the first mobile carrier, and one of the largest companies overall, to do so. The company, a unit of AT&T Inc., is using Atlanta-based processor BitPay Inc. to handle digital-currency payments. No information …

JPMorgan Chase & Co. said it will buy InstaMed, a specialist in health-care payments. Terms were not disclosed. In April, InstaMed released an app with a blockchain prototype that it said will demonstrate how the technology can support adjudication and payment for insurance claims, patient billing, and patient payment. NLS …