A trade group of independent ATM deployers on Thursday issued a report blasting the federal government’s Operation Choke Point targeting high-risk merchants, and the nation’s leading retailer association called on the Federal Trade Commission to investigate the PCI Security Standards Council on antitrust grounds. While mostly affecting a few merchant …

The latest battle between merchants and the major card brands has been brewing behind the scenes for months but went public Thursday when an advocacy group for big-box retailers charged that a new twist on network rules is slowing the progress of mobile payments. The controversy involves regulations long maintained …

Courting and retaining high-risk merchants can yield high returns. But it’s a lot of work. It’s no simple task, but one that can yield enviable returns. Finding the profit in high-risk merchants requires diligence, a knack for customer service, and a commitment to thoroughness. It also requires deep knowledge of …

New technologies and market entrants are exerting downward pressure on acceptance costs for mobile payments. But how much longer will these costs matter? Card payments can be exceedingly complex, but in some ways they’re simple. Whip out a functioning credit or debit card to pay in a store and the …

While they may account for a sliver of acquiring,  ISVs and VARs are poised for fast growth. But will ISVs still be distinguishable from ISOs in a few years? Software developers and their dealers are big news in the payments business these days. They’re the ones that make point-of-sale systems …

Imagine that a government report finds that 7% of U.S. passports in use today are counterfeits. An emergency task force would be assembled to find a quick and resolute solution to this gross offense. Yet, every year more than 7% of the U.S. adult population falls victim of identity theft—more …

U.S. Sen. Richard Durbin, D-Ill., is familiar to Digital Transactions readers as the author of the celebrated (or infamous, depending on your point of view) Durbin Amendment to the 2010 Dodd-Frank Act. That little cherry on top of the Dodd-Frank sundae put a cap on how much interchange big banks …

Its original proposition was offering Bitcoin acceptance to merchants, but now BitPay Inc. is adding a reloadable Visa prepaid card to its consumer-facing products. The card provides utility to merchants and consumers in that it will enable cardholders to make purchases at the millions of Visa-accepting merchants in addition to …

Merchant-services company Harbortouch Payments LLC has a new private-equity investor in a deal valued at more than $500 million. Searchlight Capital Partners L.P. announced Wednesday it made an investment in Allentown, Pa.-based Harbortouch. Jared Isaacman, Harbortouch chief executive and founder, says the deal is valued at more than $500 million, …

• PayPal Holdings Inc. plans to cease operations in Turkey in the next week because financial regulators there rejected its license applications, apparently because it does not keep its IT systems in Turkey, Fortune reported. • Some 88% of 400 respondents to a RemoteDepositCapture.com poll about risk said the benefits …