What's New in Payments

The Clearing House to secure real-time payments system with tokenization

Mastercard and The Clearing House partner on tokenization solution — Mastercard — “The Clearing House (TCH) and Mastercard announced they are partnering to enable TCH to provision and manage Mastercard-branded tokens on behalf of banks… The Clearing House will launch its card tokenization solution in the next quarter, and is in the process of extending tokenization to other networks it manages, including Real-Time Payments (RTP).”



What's New in Payments

Mastercard to use blockchain for non-card payments and product authentication

Mastercard opens-up access to blockchain API for partner banks and merchants — Mastercard — “Mastercard blockchain solution has the ability to power secure and seamless non-card payment transactions such as business-to-business payments and trade finance transactions. It also has the ability to power non- payment solutions such as proof of provenance that helps authenticate products across the supply chain.”


What's New in Payments

Apple Pay now available on older iPhones in Japan

iOS 11 activates Apple Pay for older Japanese iPhones — Ata Distance — UPDATE Further investigation has found that the following information is not accurate. Click through for further information — “With the NFC switching capabilities of iOS 11 Apple Pay Apple quietly activated Apple Pay Japan for older non-FeliCa NFC capable iPhones such as iPhone 6S. Surprised users with Japan issue cards that support JCB J/Speedy and Mastercard Contactless can add them to Apple Pay and use them at stores with EMV NFC-Pay ready readers.”


Transit Ticketing Today

Shanghai Metro installs QR code readers at turnstiles

Shanghai Metro will soon allow QR code payments — ECNS — “With QR code readers being installed at turnstiles in several Shanghai metro stations, subway passengers can pay their tickets via Alipay or China UnionPay simply by scanning the QR code. Maglev train stations at Pudong International Airport and Longyang Road will also accept QR payments.”






What's New in Payments

Singapore banks begin rollout of NetsPay NFC and QR mobile wallet

NetsPay mobile wallet available for download — The Straits Times — “Nets users can now leave their physical ATM cards at home. They can also ditch multiple mobile apps that provide similar payment functions. The NetsPay mobile wallet — which can digitise the credit, debit and ATM cards of six banks here — is currently available for download…. The app lets users pay through their digital Nets cards with just a tap of their mobile phone, or by scanning a QR code at merchants that accept the service — without encumbering users with the need to download multiple mobile apps.”


What's New in Payments

Apple Pay set to launch in Poland and the Netherlands?

Apple Pay may be coming to Poland and the Netherlands later this year — AppleInsider — “A tip and photos received by AppleInsider on Wednesday indicate that PKO Bank Polski is currently testing Apple Pay, and could offer support by the end of 2017… Several sources for Dutch site One More Thing have meanwhile claimed that ING will soon bring Apple Pay to the Netherlands, followed by a second bank, Bunq… One source suggested that Apple Pay will launch in the country on November 2.”


What's New in Payments

NFC mobile payments users triple in Poland in a year

Polish banks have almost 600,000 customers using smartphone contactless payments — Cashless.pl — “At the end of September almost 590,000 customers used Android Pay or HCE payments. That means an increase of 180,000 compared to June, when approximately 410,000 used mobile payments, and an increase of over 400,000 compared to September 2016, when banks stated that they have approximately 175,000 HCE users.”


What's New in Payments

Apple Pay to go live in Scandinavia next week?

Exclusive: Apple Pay to be launched in Sweden, Finland and Denmark next week — MacPro — “According to several sources familiar with the matter, Apple will launch Apple Pay next week in Sweden, Denmark and Finland. In Sweden, Apple is working with Nordea, a Nordic bank with its headquarters in Sweden. Which bank or banks that will partner with Apple in Denmark and Finland is yet unknown.”




What's New in Payments

Mastercard CEO: Cash is our main competitor

My competition is with cash: Ajay Banga — LiveMint — “Eighty-five percent of the world’s retail payments — person to merchant — are in cash… So who do I view as my competition? Cash. I don’t view another network, I don’t view Paytm, I don’t view Apple as competition. We are actually working with all of them. They all need our technology.”


What's New in Payments

Seamless considers sale or closure of Seqr mobile payments service

Seamless considers re-alignment for sustainable growth — Seamless — “The proposals that are up for considerations are the following: Phasing out of the B2C offering Seqr, and a renewed focus on B2B offerings, where traction is both strong and accelerating. Phasing out the B2C offering Seqr would preferably be made in the form of a sale or winding-down. To fund the growth of B2B, and exit costs of B2C, the board considers to propose the launch of a rights issue, to be completed before year-end 2017.”


What's New in Payments

PayPal to turn Venmo P2P payments app into ‘ubiquitous digital wallet’

Venmo now accepted at millions of retailers — PayPal — “Starting this week, Venmo customers can use their Venmo account to shop and make purchases on their mobile phone at more than two million US retailers, almost everywhere PayPal is accepted… Our vision for Venmo is to not only be the go-to app for payments between friends, but also a ubiquitous digital wallet that helps consumers spend wherever and however they want to pay, regardless of device.”


NFC World

NXP unveils world’s thinnest contactless chip module

NXP revolutionizes ID security and durability with world’s thinnest contactless chip module — NXP — PARTNER NEWS — “Measuring just 200μm thick ­— roughly four times the thickness of an average human hair — the MOB10 is 20% thinner than its predecessor and is ideally suited for use in ultra-thin inlays for passport data pages and identity cards.”


What's New in Payments

Most US banks expected to renew Apple Pay contracts

They may not like the terms, but issuers will likely re-up for Apple Pay — Digital Transactions — “The first big wave of Apple Pay contracts are expiring this month, and a big question for both Apple Inc and the financial institutions that committed to support the computing giant’s mobile payments app is whether to renew, and under what terms, in the face of less-than-spectacular results for mobile payments generally… Expert observers and financial institution executives argue most if not all of the early signees are likely to re-up or have already done so, despite financial terms many experts consider unusual if not onerous.”