Robert McKinley, Senior Analyst/Editor Robert McKinley, with 33 years experience covering payment cards and payment systems, is Senior Analyst/Editor for CardFlash and other payments-related publications. He is the retired founder and chief executive of RAM Research, CardWeb and CardTrak. McKinley served as an expert witness in 100+ litigations including two multi-$billion trials, testified before the U.S. Congress, chaired multiple payments conferences, hired as consultant by Fortune 100 companies and several overseas financial institutions. Full Bio: www.rbm4.com

CashStar to Speak at Retail Payment Innovations Summit

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CashStar will join a panel of experts at All Payments Expo (APEX) Europe to help attendees understand and leverage the convergence of the payments, mobile, retail and marketing worlds during the session titled, APEX Europe brings together executives from diverse industries to build the next generation of prepaid, retail payments, emerging technologies and alternative financial services. APEX Europe is co-located with Retail Payment Innovations, a one-day event focusing on retail innovation and payment technology. During this panel discussion, attendees will gain real world insights from merchants’ approach to payments and commerce in an omni-channel environment. Panelists will discuss how they are approaching potential partnerships and investments across their channels.

Bitcoin integrated into Toshiba’s VisualTouch

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BitPay announces a partnership to integrate bitcoin acceptance into VisualTouch, Toshiba’s premiere POS Software Solution. Toshiba VisualTouch is a complete point of sale system that provides the advanced POS functionality needed for business management. VisualTouch POS is used in the Hospitality, Food Service, Grocery, Retail and Concession industries with a combined install base of more than 6,000 unique customers and some customers having up to 1,600 locations each.

iPayment Posts 1Q/14 Revenue Up 1.4%

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iPayment posted 1Q/14 results, having processed $5.2 billion in total transaction volume, a 1.2% decrease from the same period in 2013. In the first quarter of 2014, the Company processed 80.4 million transactions, an increase of 1.0% from the first quarter of 2013. Total revenues increased by 1.4% to $158.1 million for the first quarter of 2014 from $156.0 million for the first quarter of 2013. This increase was primarily due to higher volume per merchant, partially offset by a lower number of merchants on file during the first quarter of 2014 versus the first quarter of 2013.

Inside Secure Launches HCE Payments App

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Inside Secure announces at Cartes America the launch of a white-label Android application for Host Card Emulation (HCE) based payments.The new MatrixHCE product enables mobile payment application providers to accelerate time to market by using the pre-validated HCE payment functionality. It includes the highest level of software security to defend against any attacks in the hostile mobile environment. Introduced on Android 4.4 (KitKat), Host Card Emulation (HCE) allows for contactless payments (and other services including loyalty programs, building access and transit passes) to be made directly between the consumers’ bank mobile application and the retailers point-of-sale, using NFC technology. It allows sensitive data used to facilitate transactions to be stored on, and accessed from, cloud servers rather than a mobile device and without the use of a hardware secure element.

MC Payment Processing Center in UAE

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MasterCard announced it will provide integrated processing services to customers across the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) through an end-to-end, multi-brand cards and payments processing center located in the UAE. The center will help customers respond rapidly to changing consumer needs, drive adoption of innovative technology and increase efficiency. Its opening highlights MasterCard’s commitment to bring global expertise closer to customers in local markets.

Revention Integrates LevelUP Payments Platform

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Revention Point of Sale Solutions is pleased to announce their integration with LevelUp, a progressive mobile loyalty and payments platform that uses QR code technology to execute mobile transactions via Smartphones. The flexibility of the LevelUp mobile application allows for seamless integration with a wide range of restaurant industry concepts -from quick service to full service fine dining and everything in between.

Mollie PSP Accepts Bitcoin

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Mollie payment service provider has added Bitcoin acceptance to its offering of online payment methods. This addition allows thousands of online merchants to start accepting Bitcoins immediately without the need for further integration. Mollie accepts the Bitcoin equivalent of the transaction amount and credits the online merchant’s euro account within two working days. The Bitcoin-Euro exchange rate is fixed at the time of payment and this amount as well as the payment is guaranteed.

Lamassu’s Two Way Bitcoin ATM

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Lamassu is taking orders for its modular system, which enables owners of existing Lamassu Bitcoin ATMs to add Bitcoin-for-cash capability via its new Santo Tirso bill dispensing pedestal. Previously, the manufacturer only produced machines with the ability to make cash-for-Bitcoin transactions. The bill dispenser stands, which sell for $5,500 each, are now available for preorder and will make their first appearance at the Bitcoin Foundation’s Bitcoin 2014 conference in Amsterdam May 15-17.

Visa/MasterCard Credit Card Q1

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Visa (VS) and MasterCard (MC) credit card activity ramped up in the first quarter, as Gross Dollar Volume (GDV) on U.S.-issued credit and charge cards jumped 9.5% year-on-year (Y/Y) in the first quarter of 2014 (1Q/2014), according to CardData. VS’ U.S. credit card GDV was up 10.2% to $281 billion, while MC’s U.S. credit and charge card GDV increased 8.1% in 1Q/2014 to $145 billion. The first quarter growth was a pickup for MasterCard, the highest level over the past five quarters.