The extent of government scrutiny of the acquiring business came into sharp relief on Wednesday as a federal official told an audience of top-level executives with processors and independent sales organizations that online transaction fraud is too high and that the executives must do more to bring it down. “There …

Open-loop prepaid cards are slowly but steadily gaining market share and now account for nearly 40% of the market, but closed-loop prepaid cards, especially gift cards, remain highly popular with consumers. The 9th annual study of the prepaid card market by Mercator Advisory Group Inc., released in August, shows volumes …

Peter Lucas Flush with new investment, firms that lend to merchants against credit card receipts are more optimistic than ever. Now, they’re laying plans for fixed loans and advances against cash, checks, and alternative payments. It’s been a tough economic recovery for retailers. Not only is consumer spending mired in …

Linda Punch New authentication tools and other technologies are dimming the once-bright line between card-present and card-not-present transactions. Will the card networks take note of that trend any time soon? In an era of mobile wallets, tap-and-go, and other alternative payments using devices other than traditional cards and card readers, …

Karen Epper Hoffman With strong brand appeal abroad, online merchants in the U.S. are pursuing overseas sales as never before. Two big hurdles are currency management and fraud risk. Tommy Bahama saw an opportunity abroad. Executives at the purveyor of island-oriented clothes and home décor knew that their brand would …

The long war over interchange isn’t likely to end any time soon, which means its harmful effects will go on as well, says Eric Grover. The war over interchange will continue. Washington should stay out of it, playing the role of night watchman in payments, not central planner. Eric Grover …

Even though merchants accepting mobile payments are in the minority and mobile-payment volume is low, losses from fraud incidents for those merchants are higher than for non-mobile-accepting merchants, according to the fourth annual “LexisNexis True Cost of Fraud” study sponsored by content provider LexisNexis Risk Solutions and conducted by Javelin …

The National Retail Federation announced on Tuesday that it is ready go to court to challenge the controversial proposed settlement to a massive group of merchant lawsuits against the bank card networks and some leading banks over card interchange. The NRF’s entry into the fray is the latest indication of …

Born of the transformed world wrought by Durbin, Visa’s new acquirer fee is either a rational response to changed economics or a diabolical exercise of raw power, depending on whom you ask. By John Stewart Bruce Reisman is an angry man. “I’m not a happy camper. I’m constantly looking for …

The nation’s biggest debit card issuers have reversed polarity and are now promoting PIN-debit cards over signature debit and small-value transactions over bigger tickets, if the results of a debit study released this week are any indication. “Certainly, there’s a fundamental shift under way” among large banks to focus on …