Public transportation users in Paris can now buy and store transit tickets and passes on Samsung and Orange NFC phones — and can use any Android phone to buy a ticket and then upload it to their contactless travel card via NFC... More
The Niuron banking consortium will develop a platform to verify the digital identity of clients — Europa Press (translation) — “For banks, the benefits of this platform translate into an increase in speed, cost savings, reduction of fraud, reduction of operational risk and improvement of the prevention of money laundering. The client, on the other hand, decreases the time necessary during a registration process and has control and sovereignty over their personal data, thus improving their experience.”
Ripple powered mobile app to provide on-demand domestic payments in Japan — Ripple — “MoneyTap allows the bank consortium customers to make instant domestic payments and only requires a bank account, phone number, or QR code… The Japan bank consortium, led by SBI Ripple Asia, is comprised of 61 banks covering more than 80% of all banking assets in Japan… Three members of the Japan bank consortium: SBI Net Sumishin Bank, Suruga Bank and Resona Bank will be the first to go live on the mobile app in autumn of 2018. This will be followed by a staggered roll out to the rest of consortium.”
Softbank plots digital payments raid with plans for Paypal rival — City AM — “Japanese technology giant Softbank is planning to create a global digital payments system that could rival giants such as PayPal, according to reports. The tech firm will lead a consortium backed by some of the world’s biggest banks… Under the plan, Softbank could acquire a large financial software business as a springboard to rolling out the new system.”
Japan’s big banks plan digital currency launch — Financial Times — “A consortium of banks, led by Mizuho Financial Group and Japan Post Bank, has won support from the country’s central bank and financial regulator to launch the J Coin, an electronic currency to pay for goods and transfer money using smartphones. The J Coin would be convertible into yen on a one-to-one basis, operating via a smartphone app and using QR codes to be scanned in stores.”
SoftBank, Sprint, Far EasTone and TBCASoft launch Blockchain consortium for telecom carriers — SoftBank — “SoftBank, Sprint and TBCASoft succeeded in demonstrating cross-carrier top-ups, mobile wallet roaming, international remittances and IoT payment on a cross-carrier payment platform system using TBCASoft’s blockchain technology.”
Blockchain consortium R3 has reduced the amount it aims to raise from bank members in its first large round of equity funding to US$150m from US$200m, Reuters reports... More
The Centre for Process Innovation (CPI) has formed a specialist consortium to create a UK manufacturing supply chain that will support the widespread adoption of NFC packaging. More
Customers at US supermarket chain Walmart will soon be able to pay for purchases by scanning a QR code at the point of sale using Walmart Pay, the retailer’s own mobile payment service. Walmart Pay will be integrated into the Walmart app and introduced in select stores this month, with a nationwide launch expected in the first half of next year. More
JP Morgan Chase has unveiled Chase Pay, a “closed loop network with access to credit and debit customers” that leverages the bank’s 94m debit, credit and prepaid card accounts, uses QR codes for mobile payments and will be accepted by all members of the MCX retailer-led mobile payments consortium. More
US retailer-led consortium MCX is to add ACH payments capabilities to its CurrentC mobile wallet, using technology developed by Buy It Mobility Networks (BIM)... More
Indian payment services provider Citrus Pay has raised approximately US$25m from a consortium of new and existing investors... More
NTT Docomo has become the world’s first mobile network operator (MNO) to deploy Fido authentication throughout its network, allowing it to replace passwords for millions of customers across its services with a range of enhanced authentication methods including both fingerprint- and iris-based biometrics... More
Retailer owned mobile payments consortium MCX has confirmed to NFC World that it will launch its CurrentC mobile wallet in an unspecified mid-sized US market soon, following the announcement that founder member Best Buy will begin to accept rival mobile payments service Apple Pay in its stores later this year... More
MCX CEO Dekkers Davidson has outlined more of the consortium’s plans for its CurrentC mobile wallet in a keynote presentation at the Money2020 event in Las Vegas, confirming that banks will be able to add open loop payment cards to the service when it goes live in 2015... More
MCX is now open to supporting both NFC and Bluetooth Low Energy for payments and is in conversation with credit card issuers about opening up its CurrentC mobile wallet to payment cards, CEO Dekkers Davidson and COO Scott Rankin have told reporters... More
“Within the last 36 hours, we learned that unauthorized third parties obtained the email addresses of some of our CurrentC pilot program participants and individuals who had expressed interest in the app,” retailer-owned mobile payments consortium MCX has revealed... More
“Much of the conversation the past couple of days has been misinformed about the product MCX is developing, so we’d like to set the record straight,” the retailer-owned consortium says in a detailed blog post outlining its position and plans for its CurrentC mobile wallet that has been published in response to criticism of the decision taken by member merchants CVS and Rite Aid to pull support for NFC payments... More
Owners of Apple’s new NFC-enabled smartwatch and iPhones will not be able to make Apple Pay mobile payments in either Walmart or Best Buy, the Wall Street Journal reports... More
Atmel, Broadcom, Dell, Intel, Samsung and Wind River have formed the Open Interconnect Consortium (OIC), a new industry grouping that aims to improve the interoperability and define the connectivity requirements for the Internet of Things (IoT)... More