World Bank reports ‘global surge’ in digital payments during pandemic

World Bank graph showing global surge in digital payments during Covid-19 pandemic

The Covid-19 pandemic has driven a “global surge” in digital payments with two-thirds of adults worldwide now making or receiving digital payments, rising from 35% in 2014 to 57% in 2021 in developing economies and from 88% in 2014 to 95% in 2021 in high-income economies, according to the World Bank’s Global Findex 2021 database... More


Researchers develop NFC extenders that can be built into clothing to enable hands-free NFC interactions at a distance

smart clothing with ‘body-centric NFC’ that enables hands-free access control

An international team of researchers has developed flexible NFC extenders that enable the wearer to interact with NFC tags at a greater distance than has previously been possible, opening up the potential for hands-free NFC interactions in use cases ranging from exchanging contact details at a distance, entering a building while carrying shopping bags and accessing online instructions while carrying out physical exercise... More


European Parliament passes law that requires Apple to open up its NFC chip

European Parliament building with flags

The European Parliament has adopted the Digital Markets Act (DMA) that will obligate Apple, Google and other “gatekeeper” technology companies to allow app developers and third-party service providers access to device functionalities “such as near-field communication technology, secure elements and processors, authentication mechanisms and the software used to operate those technologies”... More


Leeds United rolls out NFC contactless ticketing

Leeds United Football Club digital NFC ticketing on smartphone and in use at turnstyle

Fans of Leeds United Football Club in England will be able to gain entry to home games at Elland Road stadium during the 2022-23 season by scanning a digital NFC season pass or match ticket stored on their smartphone or smart watch at stadium turnstiles... More