One issue on the minds of payment professionals is the future role of plastic cards, which have been central to the payments equation for more than half a century. Opinions differ regarding their future. Some predict consumers will pay with plastic at the POS for decades to come; others believe their end is nigh.
Fewer plastic cards in circulation would be good for the environment, but we're a long way from convincing a critical mass of consumers and merchants it's more beneficial to pay with a smartphone or other mobile device than it is to pay with a traditional card. Nevertheless, strides have been made. This issue's lead article delves into the evolving state of payment form factors and the promising options emerging, many of which involve use of mobile devices. Virtual cards, however, are also making gains, opening up additional options for achieving speedy, secure payments in new markets.
Topics discussed by contributing writers in this issue include what makes a merchant level salesperson valuable, and how much resource should be devoted to individuals with lackluster performance; ongoing developments in payments likely to be top of mind in 2018; the fine line to walk when moving merchant accounts; Visa's new requirements pertaining to force-post transactions, which were once common but are now rare; and things to keep in mind when devising a disaster preparedness plan.
Also inside are excerpts from recent news stories posted under Breaking Industry News on our home page, www.greensheet.com. Among the stories covered are consumer and fraudster activities reported by the National Retail Federation during the year-end holiday shopping season; a class-action lawsuit filed against Merchants' Choice Payment Solutions and Woodforest National Bank; tough security measures enacted by SWIFT for 2018; comparison of U.S. and U.K. mobile wallet usage; Electronic Payments' being honored by Entrepreneur magazine for entrepreneurship; the demise of the MoneyGram-Ant Financial merger; investigation of the 2017 Forever 21 data breach; lifting of the surcharge ban for a limited number of California businesses; and change in DOJ guidelines for prosecuting marijuana-related activities.
As always, you'll also find product and company profiles, as well as a wealth of briefs on recent milestones achieved in the payments sphere. If your latest news isn't covered, please send a press release to press@greensheet.com, and we'll post it online and consider it for follow-up. We will also welcome your feedback on our publications and website at greensheet@greensheet.com. 
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Notice to readers: These are archived articles. Contact names or information may be out of date. We regret any inconvenience.
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