Paytm Tap Card launched, allows offline payments in less than a second — NDTV — “There are a large number of people who at times do not have access to the internet or they have a limited daily budget so they shy away from using online payments. For them, we offer the Paytm Tap Card to enable seamless offline payments. For ensuring a wider acceptance, we are also reaching out to the merchants and are actively enabling them with NFC POS terminals to accept payments.”
POS
Ingenico and USA Technologies team up to bring contactless payments to unattended retail locations
Ingenico Group and USA Technologies announce a three year strategic alliance agreement — USA Technologies — PARTNER NEWS — “Through the Alliance Agreement, both companies will partner to pursue the unattended retail marketplace with a bundled solution that pairs Ingenico Group’s innovative hardware, software, security and services solutions portfolio with USAT’s comprehensive ePort Connect services platform specifically designed for the unattended retail market.”
eMarketer: Mobile payments adoption held back by ‘strong contactless card usage’ in Europe
Global proximity mobile payment users: eMarketer’s estimates for 2016–2021 — eMarketer — “In 2018, for the first time, more than one-third (34.9%) of smartphone users ages 14 and older will use a mobile phone to pay for a purchase at a physical point of sale (POS) at least once every six months… Adoption in parts of Western Europe has been held back by strong contactless card usage. Consumers appear less likely to tap and pay with their mobile phones when their credit and debit cards already offer a similar level of convenience.”
One in five Brits to make mobile payments in stores this year
UK: Mobile payments still looking to grab a foothold — eMarketer — “Just over 22% of UK smartphone users will use a phone to pay for goods and services at the point of sale (POS) in 2018… China has the largest mobile proximity payments market in the world, with 77.5% of smartphone users doing so this year. Within Europe, the UK’s smartphone penetration rate will rank behind Norway (23.3%), Sweden (33.8%) and Denmark (38.9%) in 2018.”
UK supermarkets to test face recognition for proof-of-age at self-checkout tills
Supermarket self-service tills replace ID checks with facial recognition — The Telegraph — “The technology will be used to remove in-person age checks when customers are buying alcohol and other age restricted items… Using Yoti at a self service till would involve a QR code showing up on the checkout screen, which could be scanned by the app. The Yoti app would then scan the shopper’s face to confirm their identity, and would then connect to the till over the internet to verify the purchase.”
Barclays trials digital receipt service
Fintech startup Flux partners with Barclays for itemised receipts — Techcrunch — “Flux, the London fintech startup founded by former early employees at Revolut, has announced a partnership with Barclays in the UK that will see it trial its itemised receipt technology with 10,000 of the bank’s customers… On the merchant side, the trial also sees Flux partnering with Barclaycard, which will provide the ability for merchants, via integration through their point-of-sale devices, to issue digital receipts to any customer.”
eMarketer raises mobile payments forecast for China
eMarketer projects surge in mobile payments in China — eMarketer — “eMarketer has raised its projections by more than 86% for 2017, and now expects 461.4 million people in the country to use a phone to pay at the POS… By 2021, 79.3% of smartphone users will be tapping, scanning and swiping at the POS. By comparison, the US will have 31% of users doing so, and that figure will be 23% in Germany.”
Mastercard to eliminate signature verification at the point of sale
No more signing on the dotted line — Mastercard — “More than 80% of Mastercard in store transactions in North America today do not require a cardholder signature at checkout… That number could now reach 100% after April 2018, when we will no longer require signatures at checkout for any credit or debit purchases in Canada and the US.”
NXP cuts card transaction times, adds fingerprints to cards
PARTNER NEWS: NXP is to unveil a new fingerprint-on-card solution at Money20/20 that combines a dual interface card with an integrated fingerprint sensor... More
UK consumers warm to face verification at the point of sale
Shoppers give thumbs up to in-store biometrics — Worldpay — “Just under two thirds (63%) of consumers want to be able to use a biometric scan to authorise payments in-store. When it comes to using our body parts to pay, 69% of consumers say they’d be open to using a finger. But respondents are also beginning to come around to the idea of using their face (24%), iris (33%), and voice (18%) to identify themselves at the point of sale.”
Apple demos Face ID on iPhone X
The new, tenth anniversary iPhone X will not include support for Touch ID and owners will instead use a combination of face recognition and a double click of an enlarged side button to make Apple Pay purchases, the iPhone maker has revealed... More
Contactless to account for more than one in two POS transactions globally by 2022
Contactless to account for more than one in two POS transactions globally by 2022 — Juniper Research — “A new study from Juniper Research has found more than half (53%) of global transactions at POS (point of sale) will be contactless within five years, compared to just 15% this year… Adoption in the US would rise sharply over the period, with contactless rising from less than 2% of transactions this year to 34% by 2022.”
JCPenney adds credit cards and loyalty rewards to Apple Pay
Customers of US department store chain JCPenney can now add the retailer’s credit card to Apple Pay and make contactless payments at any of the company’s stores nationwide... More
Citi Pay launches in the US
Citi Pay launches in the US — Citi — “Online and in-app purchases will be enabled through Citi’s integration of Masterpass… For Android users, the digital wallet also enables Citi cardholders to make in-store purchases by tapping their Android mobile devices at any NFC-enabled point-of-sale terminal… In 2016, Citi Pay launched in Singapore, Australia and Mexico with tap and pay capabilities.”
Galeries Lafayette opens NFC digital showrooms for handbags
French department store chain Galeries Lafayette has added a digital showroom for leather goods at its La Rochelle and Cannes stores, allowing shoppers to place handbags that interest them on a dedicated table where NFC tags attached to the products are used to bring up information, options and checkout details... More
Square gets green light to take on banks with ‘PIN on glass’ mobile technology
Square gets green light to take on banks with ‘PIN on glass’ mobile technology — Australian Financial Review — “Banks are set to face more competition in the lucrative mobile point of sale technology game as secret trials featuring Twitter founder Jack Dorsey’s payments company Square are set to help credit card companies allow more payments through smartphone screens.”
East London gets local currency built on the blockchain
Residents across East London can now make mobile payments at small businesses with a local currency launched by Tel-Aviv-based digital wallet provider Colu which makes use of blockchain technology... More
Belfius Bank launches HCE mobile payments with Bancontact support
Customers of Belgium’s Belfius Bank can now make host card emulation (HCE) based mobile payments using the bank’s mobile app, making it the “first solution available on the Belgian market” that enables contactless payments with the Bancontact debit card... More
Target to combine offers with mobile payments to create a “one-stop shop” for customers
Customers of US retail giant Target will soon be able to redeem offers and make in-store payments using a single service on their mobile phone, as the chain announces plans to fully integrate its Cartwheel offers app into its main Target mobile app to enable a “one-stop shop”... More
Ant Financial extends online credit service to retailers
Ant Financial extends online credit service to retailers — China Daily — “Ant Financial Services Group, the online finance firm backed by billionaire Jack Ma, will extend its online consumer credit service to four million retail businesses across the country to boost sales and encourage spending-as China’s consumers increasingly feel more comfortable shopping with borrowed money.”