The rocketing popularity of Google Inc.’s Android operating system for smart phones could also propel near-field communication (NFC) technology for mobile financial services now that NXP Semiconductor and Giesecke & Devrient have introduced NFC software for Android phones. The open-source code, announced this week at a major telecom conference in …

While the news in smart phones this week has been all about Verizon Wireless’s announcement that it will start marketing the iPhone next month, the news that may well be of more importance to mobile payments and mobile banking is the hot streak that Google Inc.’s Android operating system is …

As developers of applications for smart phone-based payments and incentives map their plans for what promises to be a breakthrough year in mobile financial services, evidence continues to pile up that they will have to reckon with a market split between three main operating systems. “The race for the lead …

While Apple Inc.’s iPhone remains the iconic smart phone for mobile payments, some recent research reveals that the Android platform produced by rival Silicon Valley denizen Google Inc. is mounting a serious challenge in shipments and usage of the mobile Web. In a development with importance to e-commerce merchants and …

The Apple iPhone, long a staple among consumers who pay bills and transfer funds via mobile devices, is now being challenged for mobile-banking leadership by a surging Android operating system, according to new research. Handsets that use Google Inc.’s open-source Android OS now account for 12% of the smart-phone market, …

Visa Inc. on Thursday said it will introduce transaction alerts and other services that will work with Google Inc.'s new Android operating system for mobile phones. The world's largest payments network also said it has developed contactless-payment and money-transfer applications for a new handset from Nokia that features near-field communication …

The push to make cryptocurrency a mainstream payment option got a boost early Tuesday as terminal maker Ingenico announced it is partnering with cryptocurrency exchange Crypto.com to accept cryptocurrency through its Axium Android terminals. Merchants accepting cryptocurrency through the Ingenico terminals can settle transactions through their Ingenico merchant wallet in …

Payments provider BlueSnap launched its Channel Partner Program, through which it has signed eight system-integration partnerships in the U.S., Canadian, and U.K. markets. Visa Inc. said it is working with governing entities around the world to help them create digital access to government services for their citizens. Mastercard Inc. announced it has extended its …

Oil and gas giant BP plc early Monday launched a loyalty app called earnify, which enables BP customers to earn rewards points for fuel and in-store purchases at BP and Amoco locations. App users earn 1 point per $1 spent on fuel and 2 points per $1 spent on other …

France-based fintech Market Pay has launched a single app it says can process payments from both point-of-sale terminals and Android or iOS smart phones. FICO, a U.S. developer of fraud-prevention technology, said it is working with Jersey Telecom in the United Kingdom to develop software that can detect telephony signals in real …