A recent report from the city of Los Angeles’ parking department showed that for the first time more than half of the payments made for public parking were from a debit or credit card as opposed to cash. The report shows that in March of this year, debit and credit card payments made up $2.34 […]
Parking Meters See Decline in Cash, Rise in Cards Read More »
Could the next emerging payment method be associated with your fingerprint? In a recent six-month trial, a grocery store chain in France gave their customers the choice of signing up for a voluntary program to test the technology. The pilot program ran from October 2012 through March 2013 and saw more than 900 participants. The
Paying With Your Fingerprint? –2024 Update Read More »
The Visa MasterCard Settlement that was reached last fall in the class-action lawsuit between Visa and MasterCard and a large group of retailers is still being argued over. The latest update comes with concerns from some of the class members such as Wal-Mart, Target, and national associations representing grocers, smaller retailers, etc. At its core,
Update on Visa & MasterCard Settlement [2024Update] Read More »
Just a few days ago we gave a brief overview of what EMV chip card technology is. With the payment technology firmly in place in almost every other region than the U.S. the only next step is to bring it stateside. Today news was released that the very first EMV enabled ATM machines are operational
First EMV ATMs to Go Live in the U.S. Read More »
U.S. consumers spent over $500 million through mobile wallets on their smartphones last year. While this is miniscule as compared to the overall merchant services industry, where trillions of dollars that are spent annually through plastic credit and debit cards, it does signal a growing trend in the industry. Mobile wallet apps have experienced slow
$500 million Processed Through Mobile Wallets in [2023 Update] Read More »
In a surprising move, Square card reader updated their terms of service agreement that every user must agree to before processing to include the ban of all sales of firearms, firearm hardware, and ammunition. Previously, the agreement had only excluded sales of guns and other weapons from online, mail order, and telephone sales outlets. The
Square Amends Terms of Service, Bans Gun Sales [2023 Update] Read More »
Late last week prosecutors unsealed Federal court documents that charge eight men with stealing $45 million dollars from numerous global banks to pay for high-end watches, expensive cars and other luxuries. In December 2012 and February of this year, the prosecutors allege that these men withdrew $2.8 million dollars from ATMs in only two attacks
Thieves use ATMs in multi-million dollar heist Read More »
Should Merchants Surcharge? In many states merchants have had a decision to make. Recent developments allow merchants that accept credit cards to pass card processing charges on to their customers. So should merchants surcharge their customers? First of all, in at least ten states there are laws that prevent merchants from assessing their customers a
Should Merchants Surcharge? Read More »
The Official Merchant Services Blog would like to announce that Host Merchant Services has now added next-day funding to their already impressive line of services. Merchant services customers appreciate getting their deposits the next business day, as this is critical for funding payroll and inventory purchases for the week. Merchants can now expect funding for MasterCard,
Next-Day Funding Now Available Read More »
Today the Official Merchant Services Blog brings NFC technology back into the spotlight, with a look at a pilot program U.S. Bancorp is running in two test cities. The company, one of the nation’s more tech-oriented big banks, is joining the ranks of companies testing near-field communication (NFC) technology by pairing a rewards credit card with
iPhones, NFC and Rewards Cards [2023 Update] Read More »
This holiday season, the Official Merchant Services Blog brings you the latest on Facebook’s newest venture, Facebook Gifts. On Tuesday, the company announced that any U.S. member can now send Facebook friends tangible gifts, which includes wine, digital gift cards and even charitable donations. Facebook Gifts The Facebook Gifts program, previously available only to some users of the
‘Tis The Season, For Facebook Gifts [2023 Update] Read More »
Today the Official Merchant Services Blog brings you the most recent developments in the ongoing credit card interchange settlement lawsuit. Merchants opposing the pending credit card interchange case filed an appeal last week challenging the court’s preliminary approval of a key part of the settlement. The appeal, filed by four merchants and seven merchant trade groups, asks the Second
Merchants Appeal Key Part Of Interchange Settlement Read More »
Today The Official Merchant Services Blog will focus on an exclusive deal offered to merchants by Host Merchant Services, a second year of the Discover “On Us” plan, formerly the Add Discover On Discover promotion. This plan comes at just the right time for merchants as holiday shopping will increase their traffic and sales. This offer from Discover, through
Discover “On Us” Program Read More »
Today, the Official Merchant Services Blog shines a light on a little known holiday that falls between Black Friday, and Cyber Monday called Small Business Saturday. Since Host Merchant Services has many small businesses in its customer base, we wanted to take a moment to spotlight this newer day of shopping focus and frenzy. This is the third year
Small Business Saturday: Nov. 24th Read More »
On Friday, the Judge presiding over the controversial Interchange Settlement case in Brooklyn, N.Y. gave preliminary approval to the settlement of credit card interchange litigation announced July 13. The Official Merchant Services Blog recently explained why the controversial Interchange settlement was being considered for preliminary approval, despite the backlash from merchants and large corporations. We also began talking about
Interchange Settlement Given Preliminary OK Read More »
Today the Official Merchant Services Blog explains why the controversial Interchange settlement is being considered for preliminary approval, despite the backlash from merchants and large corporations. We began talking about the possibility of ‘The Big Cash Comeback’ when the settlement was first announced, and later we discussed the opposition to the settlement. Last week Judge John Gleeson said the
Interchange Settlement Nears Preliminary Approval [2023 Update] Read More »
Today’s edition of the Official Merchant Services Blog will take a look into the newest data breach, involving NY-based Barnes & Noble Inc. Barnes & Noble revealed last week a “sophisticated criminal effort” had taken place at 63 stores, resulting in hacked PIN pad devices putting some of its customers at risk. The company discovered
Barnes & Noble Data Breach [2023 Update] Read More »
This is the latest installment in The Official Merchant Services Blog’s Knowledge Base effort. We want to make the payment processing industry’s terms and buzzwords clear. We want to remove any and all confusion merchants might have about how the industry works. Host Merchant Services promises: we deliver personal service and clarity. So we’re going to take some time to
Industry Terms: Large Ticket Programs Read More »