India’s Axis Bank has launched Lime, a mobile wallet that combines banking, shopping and payment services and lets customers make in-store purchases using an encrypted audio signal generated by their device.

“The pay feature will allow Lime users to make app-to-app payments from Lime by using an encrypted sound signal which contains the user’s Lime ID and payment token for completion of the payment,” the bank told NFC World. “The user and the sender will receive a payment confirmation message. For now, there isn’t any in-store integration. The merchant will have to use his or her smartphone to accept the payment.”

To use the service, customers transfer funds from their credit or debit card into their Lime Wallet. They can then make purchases in stores and in third-party apps by clicking on a Lime Pay button.

Lime will also allow users to make online and bill payments, peer-to-peer money transfers, split bills, pay for flight, bus and movie tickets and create a shared wallet with family and friends that funds can be transferred into and then used by others. It will also let consumers set up a digital savings account within the app.

A video gives an overview of the Lime mobile app:

“Customer preferences are changing rapidly and technology is transforming the way these preferences are being met,” says Shikha Sharma, managing director and CEO of Axis Bank. “Our effort has been to constantly innovate through the use of smart technology to meet these evolving needs. Lime is the next step in this journey.”

“Given the boom in smartphone ownership across India, people are interacting with their banks digitally,” adds Rajiv Anand, group executive and head of retail banking at Axis Bank. “Lime is an integrated mobile app that offers high customer engagement through new digital and financial behaviours.

“It offers a connected suite of services designed specifically to address the user’s shopping, payment and banking needs. Lime will change the way people manage their money and set financial goals.”

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