JCB pilot of Japan’s first fingerprint authentication chip card — JCB — “Users first record one or more fingerprints for authentication purposes. When they want to buy something, they need only touch the fingerprint sensor on the card’s lower right corner with their finger so as to authenticate payment. The fingerprint record is only kept in the card, and given that fingerprint authentication is also done on the card, merchants do not need any further equipment to accept payment.”
Archive for April 2018
Royal Bank of Canada adds support for Samsung Pay
Samsung Canada teams up with RBC to expand Samsung Pay availability to Canadians — Samsung — “This latest announcement follows the expanded Canadian availability of Samsung Pay, with RBC joining existing Samsung Pay partners including CIBC, American Express Canada, ATB Financial, Interac Debit, Mastercard, Scotiabank and Visa Canada.”
Emirates NBD rolls out blockchain security platform that adds QR codes to physical cheques
Emirates NBD leads banking sector in cheque security by successfully rolling out ‘Cheque Chain’ at scale — Emirates NBD — “Cheque Chain enables a unique QR (Quick Response) code to be printed on every leaf of newly issued cheque books. The unique code registers each cheque on the bank’s blockchain platform, ensuring that once the cheque is received and cleared under the bank’s ICCS technology, bank staff can validate the cheque’s authenticity and have access to its source at all times. In doing so, this significantly reduces the risk of fraud by making cheque forgery much more difficult.”
Google Pay expands support for transit ticketing cards to Portland
Google Pay now supports Hop Fastpass transit tickets in Portland, Oregon — Android Police — “To use Google Pay to pay for transit in Portland, users must first download the Hop Fastpass app and add money to create a virtual card. Once the virtual card is set up, holding your phone up the reader will work the same as with a regular Hop card.”
Japanese airline ANA to enter mobile payments market
Japan airline ANA aims to build digital payments business — Financial Times — “The plan is part of a broader digital push by ANA, which hopes to build on data collected from the 31m users of its airline miles to provide a range of services including real estate, insurance and health to consumers across Japan… ‘We are aiming for ANA’s version of Alibaba’s Alipay,’ Shinya Katanozaka, ANA’s chief executive, said in an interview.”
Rambus white paper sets out the benefits of in-aisle mobile checkout
Enabling customers to scan items in the aisle as they shop and then check themselves out and complete the payment process all from their mobile phone holds multiple benefits for retailers aiming to improve the in-store experience, cut costs and increase revenues, a new white paper from Rambus explains... More
Mastercard files blockchain identity patent
Method and system for identity and credential protection and verification via blockchain — USPTO — “The present disclosure relates to the storage and verification and identity and credential data, specifically the use of distributed storage and storage via blockchain for protection of identity and credential data and the verification thereof.”
Bitcoin owners turn to NFC implants to keep their cryptocurrency safe
Bitcoin under the skin – Why people are using subdermal microchip wallets — CCN — “Dutchman Martijn Wismeijer is very cautious when it comes to storing Bitcoin so much so that in 2014, he had two NFC (near field communication) chips surgically implanted into each hand to store his encrypted Bitcoin keys. Wismeijer stated a number of reasons for the drastic method of storing crypto, saying he had lost the majority of his Bitcoin over the years to exchange failure, hacking, and theft… Wismeijer says he uses his chips every day to make purchases — the process involves scanning the chips with his smartphone to receive and then decrypt the keys in order to make a transaction.”
Samsung Pay rolls out its rewards program in India
Samsung Rewards now rolling out to Samsung Pay users in India — Financial Express — “Samsung India on Thursday rolled out Samsung Rewards for the users of its mobile payments service Samsung Pay in India where they can collect and redeem ‘points’ to purchase the company’s devices. The programme is already available for Samsung Pay users in other global markets, including South Korea, the US, China, Spain, Singapore, Australia, Puerto Rico, Brazil, Russia, Thailand and Malaysia.”
Uber to integrate transit ticketing into its mobile app
Moving forward together with cities — Uber — “We’ve inked a partnership with Masabi, the global leader in public transit mobile ticketing, to let Uber customers book and use transit tickets in our app. For many people, getting around their city is already a multimodal affair, and this partnership will let riders seamlessly combine public transit with other transportation options like ridesharing, no matter where they need to go.”
Alfa-Bank introduces instant mobile debit card issuance
Order a card a minute before payment — Alfa-Bank (translation) — “Instant issuing of the card in the application is a breakthrough technology that allows Alfa-Bank customers to order and start using the required bank card in less than a minute… Alfa-Bank is the first in the Russian market to offer its customers this opportunity… The card can be immediately added to Apple Pay and used to pay for purchases using a smartphone wherever contactless payment terminals are installed, in applications and on websites.”
Nike unveils limited edition NFC sneakers that deliver member-only perks
Nike launches connected shoe that builds on tech from NBA jerseys — SportTechie — “NikePlus members in New York City will be able to purchase Nike’s first-ever connected sneaker, called AF1 NikeConnect QS NYC, via the Nike Snkrs app. A near field communication (NFC) chip embedded into the shoe will activate exclusive members-only opportunities when scanned with a user’s smartphone.”
Washington Metro to accept mobile payments from 2019
Metro moves to become mobile ready, announces plans to offer new app, mobile fare payment options beginning next year — Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority — “The new mobile fare payment platform will work with Metro’s existing infrastructure, eventually allowing customers to tap their mobile device to the white target at the faregate. The payment process is designed to be seamless and will have a similar experience to tapping a SmarTrip card today.”
Microsoft researchers unveil NFC smart mat ‘sensing platform’
Project Zanzibar: Blurring the distinction between the digital and the physical worlds via tangible interaction in a portable implementation — Microsoft Research — “The Project Zanzibar mat combines capacitive sensing and near field communication (NFC) in a novel way, enabling multi-touch and hover gesture input to coexist with physical object manipulation and control. The Project Zanzibar research platform also introduces the power of portability in a tangible user interface because rather than provide its own display, it takes advantage of existing devices such as tablets. Roll it up, stow it and break it out at a picnic or on a train trip.”
SEC charges founder of former mobile payments unicorn Mozido with fraud
SEC charges fintech company founder with scheme to defraud investors and misappropriate funds — US Securities and Exchange Commission — “The Securities and Exchange Commission has charged Michael Liberty, the founder of the fintech startup now known as Mozido Inc, with a scheme to trick hundreds of investors into investing in his shell companies instead of Mozido. Liberty and his accomplices then allegedly stole most of the more than US$48m raised to fund a lavish lifestyle that included private jet flights, multi-million dollar residences, expensive cars, and movie production ventures.”
US Secret Service issues ‘chip switch’ card scam warning
Secret Service warns of chip card scheme — Krebs On Security — “The US Secret Service is warning financial institutions about a new scam involving the temporary theft of chip-based debit cards issued to large corporations. In this scheme, the fraudsters intercept new debit cards in the mail and replace the chips on the cards with chips from old cards. When the unsuspecting business receives and activates the modified card, thieves can start draining funds from the account.”
One in five organizations say they have experienced a payments data theft in the last year
One in five organizations has experienced payments data theft over the past 12 months — ACI Worldwide — “36% of organizations believe they are at a greater risk of data breach than a year ago. 44% agreed with the view that: My company would not invest in fraud solutions that add friction to the customer experience.”
Dutch supermarket chain opens cashless store
Spar Netherlands opens first cashless store — Retail Systems — “Called ‘Skippen’, or Skipping in English, the new concept enables students who download the accompanying app to purchase goods in-store without having to queue for a cash register. Shoppers simply scan items into their shopping cart via a QR code, before completing the payment with Tikkie — ABN Amro’s online payment solution.”
Ant Financial seeks US$9bn in new funding
Jack Ma’s Ant Financial to raise $9bn, become world’s biggest unicorn — Wall Street Journal — “Chinese billionaire Jack Ma’s financial technology business is about to vault into the ranks of the world’s most valuable companies. Ant Financial Services Group, carved out of his e-commerce giant Alibaba Group Holding Ltd seven years ago, is preparing to raise US$9bn in a private funding round, according to people familiar with the matter. That ups a previous fundraising target of US$5bn.”
Central bank fines Alipay for breaching data protection regulations
Alipay is stepping up data protection after PBOC fine — Yicai Global — “Alipay, the fintech platform run by Ant Financial Services Group, is looking to improve its data collection processes after China’s central bank fined it for breaching data protection regulations… Alipay published misleading video campaigns and its collection of personal financial information failed to meet minimum security requirements, the regulator said, adding that the firm also used data inappropriately.”