Carol Hazard reports on the battle between online and offline debit cards at the point of sale.

Banks make four times as much money with signature-based credit purchases, according to some reports. Retailers prefer the debit PIN purchases because they are less costly for them. In essence, merchants pay as much as 3 percent of the total transaction amount on a signature-based purchase, while they are charged no more than 25 cents for a PIN-based transaction regardless of the amount.

Dina ElBoghdady reports on retailers' interest in gift cards.

"Retailers are itching to see what happens with all the gift certificates out there," said C. Britt Beemer, chairman of consumer research firm America's Research Group. "There are literally billions of dollars at stake." Just how many billions is unclear. Many retailers declined to discuss numbers. But consulting firm Bain & Co. estimates that sales of gift cards could hit a record $38 billion for the year, up 15 to 20 percent from 2001.