Weekly EMV Industry News Roundup – 30 June 2016

Move could speed retailers’ shift to secure chip cards

Chicago Tribune

• The switch from magnetic stripe credit and debit cards to chip-enabled ones was always going to be more marathon than sprint: Millions of new cards must be manufactured and distributed, and any business that accepts payments - retailers, gas stations, doctors' offices and more - must implement new hardware and software if they want to use this more secure technology.
• But the pace of the migration may have gotten a jolt this month when Visa and Mastercard separately announced moves to get stores up and running more quickly with chip technology.
• Both card companies have said they have streamlined what is known as the certification process, which is effectively a thumbs-up for merchants that their systems are ready to safely accept chip cards.

Visa countersues Wal-Mart in debit card PIN vs signature

Reuters

• Visa Inc filed a lawsuit against Wal-Mart Stores Inc on Wednesday, claiming the retailer secretly began testing a protocol that eliminated the need for signature verifications for transactions paid for with a Visa debit card.
• The lawsuit comes about a month after Wal-Mart had sued Visa saying the payments network operator was resisting the use of personal identification numbers (PINs) by customers for purchases made on debit cards at Walmart stores.
• Visa said Wal-Mart did not disclose the PIN-only policy to Visa and noted a significant drop in debit card transactions at Walmart stores as well as customer complaints on their inability to use their debit cards at Walmart stores without a PIN, according to a filing in a New York court.

Kroger sues Visa over EMV PIN

PYMNTS

• Kroger Co. is suing Visa Inc. over EMV PIN debit-card transactions, claiming that the card network threatened them with increased fees and eliminating debit acceptance capacity in-store, if the nation’s largest grocer refused to abide by Visa’s stated EMV rules.
• Visa informed Kroger their machines are out of compliance with Visa’s requirement that customers be given the choice to verify debit purchases with a signature or a PIN instead of just a PIN when presenting their EMV cards at checkout.

Visa sues Walmart over Chip and PIN policy

Finextra

• The strained relationship between Visa and Walmart is reaching breaking point as the card scheme files a lawsuit against the supermarket chain for allegedly reneging on an agreement to allow the use of signature verification alongside Chip and PIN for transactions at the till.
• In its suit, Visa claims that Walmart has secretly been testing a protocol that eliminates the need for signature verifications for transactions paid for with a Visa debit card.