Google is piloting a new service that lets Google Assistant users confirm payment for a purchase with just their voice... More
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India to open antitrust investigation into Google Pay?
The Competition Commission of India is looking into allegations that Google is unfairly promoting its mobile payments app in the country, “five sources familiar with the case” have told Reuters... More
Metrolinx to let iPhone users top up Presto transit cards via NFC
Apple iPhone users in Toronto, Ottawa and Hamilton will soon be able to use their Presto app to top up their transit card via NFC... More
Financial Conduct Authority to add new protections for consumers’ funds
The UK’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) is to tighten up its regulations “to ensure payments firms are adequately protecting customer funds” amid concerns that the impact of Covid-19 will affect their financial viability... More
Interac reports surge in digital payments adoption
Since mid-March, first-time users of Interac’s e-Transfer service have increased by 43% and the average number of transactions has increased by 9% compared to the same time last year, the Canadian domestic debit card network provider has revealed... More
Bitkom reports major switch in German attitudes to contactless payments
Seven in ten German consumers would now like to have more opportunities to use contactless payments and 75% are trying to avoid cash payments “as often as possible”, a new survey has found... More
Swedish government regulates online payment options
A new amendment to the Swedish Payment Services Act means that online merchants must now present non-credit options ahead of any options that involve the consumer taking out credit... More
Garmin lets Japanese commuters add Suica transit cards to smart wearables
Garmin smartwatch owners in Japan can now add their Suica transit card to their wearable device and use it to pay for public transportation and at stores that accept Suica payments... More
Leaked images show how Apple Pay QR codes may look
Apple is preparing to introduce its own QR codes later this year, leaked files shared with former Techcrunch reporter Josh Constine suggest... More
Visa files central bank digital currency ecosystem patent
Visa has filed an application for a patent that sets out a way for a central bank to take fiat money that is currently in circulation, digitize it, remove the converted physical currency from circulation and then enable consumers and merchants to conduct transactions using a digital wallet “stored on a chip of a smartcard or a secure element of a user device”... More
PayPal rolls out QR payments to 28 countries around the world
PayPal users in 28 countries across the world are now able to use their PayPal app to make QR code-based mobile payments in stores — and standard seller transaction fees are being waived “for a limited time” for merchants using the new functionality... More
BYD to offer NFC keys as standard on all new cars
Four in five vehicles shipped by Chinese car maker BYD in 2019 included support for NFC keys “and the percentage is expected to top 95% in 2021,” automobile industry publication Gasgoo reports... More
Ghana switches on national instant QR mobile payments platform
The Ghana Interbank Payment and Settlement Systems (GhIPSS) has switched on a QR code-based mobile payments platform that uses a nationally harmonised QR symbol and instantly transfers funds from a consumer’s mobile wallet or bank account to the merchant’s... More
ABI: An extra 110m contactless cards will now be issued in 2020
An additional 110m contactless payment cards will be issued in 2020 compared with pre-Covid-19 forecast expectations, ABI Research predicts, bringing the total in circulation to more than 2bn... More
Israel to increase contactless payments limit by 50%
The contactless payment limit is to be increased from ILS 200 (US$56.35) to ILS 300 (US$84.52) “by the end of 2020”, the Bank of Israel has announced, “in order to improve dealing with the coronavirus pandemic”... More
Three in ten US consumers to use contactless and mobile payments post-pandemic
A new survey has found that 45% of US consumers are now using “a mobile wallet of some type”, 16% are using paper-based currency less than before the pandemic and 31% say will use contactless or mobile wallet payments instead of cash and cheques in the aftermath of Covid-19... More
Bangalore buses to go cashless post-lockdown
Buses will no longer accept cash payments once current curbs on public transportation are eased, the Bangalore Metropolitan Transport Corporation (BMTC) has announced... More
Decathlon rolls out mobile self-checkout to 81 stores across Germany
Sporting goods retailer Decathlon is rolling out its Scan & Go mobile self-checkout solution to all its stores across Germany, in response to the spread of Covid-19... More
Australia records sharp increase in NFC mobile payments adoption
A total of 10.8% of Australians are now using Apple Pay, Google Pay or Samsung Pay, up from 7.1% a year ago, a new report from market researchers Roy Morgan has found... More
NNG reports on the user experience required to successfully deliver face-based payments in stores
Face-based payments offer the potential to improve customer convenience and increase checkout speeds in stores but require consumer education to be built into the user experience to alleviate security concerns, an in-depth study of services currently on offer in China has found... More