Retailer J.C. Penney Co. Inc. announced it now accepts Apple Pay in its stores. The Penney store card will be available for use with Apple Pay, enabling cardholders to earn shopping points through JCPenney Rewards, the store’s loyalty program. Merchant processor Vantiv Inc. announced it has been selected by Columbia Bank, Tacoma, Wash., to provide …

Vantiv Inc. took the unusual step this week of filing a document with the Securities and Exchange Commission to dispute a research firm’s report about its merchant pricing. The payment processor says the report “claims Vantiv deceives merchants by marking up interchange fees.” The report about Vantiv’s allegedly high and …

Merchant cash-advance provider CAN Capital Inc. said it has returned to funding following a recapitalization by Varadero Capital, an alternative asset manager. CAN Capital said it will immediately begin funding small merchants eligible for renewal. It will work with a select set of sales partners for new merchant advances. Its products include term …

The pending $145 million acquisition of point-of-sale terminal and equipment distributor POS Portal by ScanSource Inc. will bring together two companies that provide merchants with the equipment they need at checkout counters and back offices, but which have little overlap in their customer bases and distribution channels. Founded in 2000, …

Ripple Labs announced the rollout of a real-time remittance service between Thailand and Japan, based on Ripple’s blockchain. The rollout follows what was said to be the first blockchain-based commercial money transfer across borders, which occurred in April between Spain and Mexico and involved Ripple’s technology. CryptoCoin Creations released its CryptoCoinTracker 2.1, an …

Apple Pay users visiting restaurants that are part of Punchh Inc.’s restaurant-loyalty service will be able to earn and redeem points when using the mobile-payment service, Punchh announced Thursday. Smashburger, Quiznos, and MOD Pizza will offer the Apple Pay/Punchh service later this year, Mountain View, Calif.-based Punchhsays. Apple Pay users …

• The National Retail Federation announced that senior vice president and general counsel Mallory Duncan plans to retire at the end of August. Duncan joined the trade group in 1994 as general counsel and is a staunch advocate for merchants’ interests on payments issues. He plans to consult on payments and …

• Juniper Research released a study estimating retailers globally will sustain $71 billion in card-not-present fraud over the next five years. The firm cites the U.S. move to EMV and “delays” in the arrival of the 3D Secure 2.0 protocol among the reasons for the forecasted losses. • Michael S. Blume, …

By Kevin Woodward@DTPaymentNews Apple Inc. is sponsoring its first known offers promotion for Apple Pay users with deals available June 23-25 in two San Francisco neighborhoods. Dubbed “Lose your wallet” on Apple’s Web site, the promotion includes a percentage off the purchase or a free item with a purchase. The …

    It’s no secret that smartphones and other mobile devices are changing every aspect of our lives – not only how we connect with each other digitally, but even how we buy products offline. This creates opportunities for savvy merchants – and the payments agents that serve them. Today, consumers …