TSYS, the 8th largest U.S. acquirer based on transactions processed, has launched its own line of point-of-sale devices backed by a proprietary software platform called Vital for use by its small and midsized business (SMB) customers. The Vital hardware suite includes a tablet, a countertop terminal, and a card reader that merchants insert in their own smartphones or tablets. TSYS joins other acquirers offering SMBs proprietary payment devices tied to software-as-a-service (SaaS) platforms, including First Data and Worldline. The Vital cloud-based API ecosystem technology is built on assets...