“Our intention is that V.me will ultimately be able to incorporate any or all of our new payment technologies, allowing our members to deliver the best possible payments experience whether face-to-face, online or in a mobile environment,” says Visa Europe’s Mariano Dima.
Visa Europe has announced that its V.me by Visa digital wallet service, also due to be introduced by Visa Inc, will be launched “to an initial group of consumers” in the UK, Spain and France during the autumn of 2012.
First announced in May 2011, V.me is a multi-channel digital wallet designed to store both Visa and non-Visa accounts and provide a seamless payments experience across a full range of e-commerce, m-commerce, micro, person-to-person payments and more. Support for merchant offers is also expected to be included, with NFC support due to arrive in the future.
Fourteen US and Canadian banks signed up with Visa Inc for the North American launch, originally due to take place by the end of 2011 but later moved back until 2012.
For the UK launch, Visa Europe has partnered with online payments processor WorldPay. “Further development and launch partners in each market, including banks and retailers, will be announced soon,” the payments network says.
The service will be made available through Visa’s member banks and will initially be accessed through the internet browser on a PC, laptop, tablet or smartphone. Consumers will be able to put multiple cards into the wallet.
“For retailers, it offers the opportunity to streamline the customer checkout process, driving up conversion rates and shopper satisfaction,” says Visa Europe.
“V.me sits at the heart of Visa’s future of payments,” explains the company’s Mariano Dima. “For the first time, consumers and retailers will have a streamlined online checkout experience through an acceptance mark that offers industry-leading security and, when a Visa card is used in a V.me wallet, the same protection and rights that come with any Visa card transaction.
“Our intention is that V.me will ultimately be able to incorporate any or all of our new payment technologies, allowing our members to deliver the best possible payments experience whether face-to-face, online or in a mobile environment,” Dima adds. “This comprehensive service suite, delivered under the V.me umbrella, will offer an easy way to benefit from the scale, security and reliability of Visa.”
“Shoppers are driving the demand for more convenient, secure and safe ways to pay online,” says Phillip McGriskin, chief product officer of Worldpay. “V.me is being developed specifically to address those needs.”
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