PARTNER NEWS: Watch brand Titan has partnered with State Bank of India (SBI) for the launch of a range of watches that makes use of Canada-based Tappy Tech’s wearable payments technology to let consumers make contactless transactions at POS terminals across India... More
Apple has begun rolling out iOS 14, bringing with it support for App Clips that let brands and merchants use NFC tags to provide quick and easy access to mini apps... More
US supermarket chain Giant Eagle has installed checkout-free technology at a GetGo Café+Market store in the Greater Pittsburgh area, enabling customers to simply walk into the store, select the items they wish to purchase and checkout via their mobile phone... More
GlobalPlatform has released a new specification designed to simplify the integration of strong customer authentication (SCA) for payments, banking, transport and identity applications... More
Drivers can now use Alexa to pay for their fuel using just a voice command at any of more than 11,500 Exxon and Mobil stations across the US... More
Public transport users in Washington, DC, in the US can now add their SmarTrip card to their iPhone or Apple Watch, “giving transit customers a safer, faster, more convenient way to pay”... More
Convenience store giant Circle K is to add support for cashierless shopping at one of its Phoenix, Arizona, outlets, “with other stores to follow”... More
Samsung has announced the availability of a digital-first Samsung Pay Card designed to give customers in the UK “a better banking experience through their Samsung smartphone and smartwatch, whilst gaining the rewards they want along the way”... More
China’s Ministry of Commerce has announced that pilot testing of a central bank digital currency (CBDC) developed by the People’s Bank of China (PBoC) is to be expanded to cover the country’s major commercial regions and cities including Beijing, Shanghai, Hong Kong and Macau... More
German consumers with a Galaxy S20 mobile phone will be the first to be able to use a new government-backed service that allows citizens to securely store their national ID on an embedded secure element in their smartphone, Samsung has announced... More
Tucano Coffee has installed a payments system that enables customers to make contact-free payments using face biometrics at its Afi Park coffee shop in Bucharest, Romania... More
The Alchemist, a busy cocktail bar and restaurant in the UK city of Manchester, is to roll out a new service that uses finger vein biometrics to provide a combined payments, age verification and permission-based contact tracing service that removes the need for customers to carry a physical ID card... More
A survey of 1,000 US consumers who are familiar with contactless payment cards has found that 75% now prefer using contactless cards as their primary payment method... More
Baltic banking group Citadele is offering customers in Latvia the option of ordering a payments ring that they will be able to use to make payments at any merchant equipped to accept contactless payments... More
“Globally, Visa now has more than 500 active transit projects and has helped a number of cities launch tap to pay solutions over the course of the pandemic,” the payments network has revealed... More
The new Mercedes S-Class will come with fingerprint, voice and optional face biometrics integrated into its infotainment system, enabling “verification of digital payment processes from the vehicle”, the luxury car maker has announced... More
Public transport users in Los Angeles will be able to add their TAP transit card to their iPhone or Apple Watch “this year”, LA Metro has announced... More
Visa is piloting an instalment payments service in Russia and is moving towards a commercial launch in the US, the payments network has announced... More
Amazon has unveiled Dash Cart, a smart shopping trolley that automatically tracks the items shoppers place in their trolley as they shop — and then lets them simply exit the store when they have completed their shopping, with no need to visit a physical checkout... More
Diners in fast food restaurants and convenience stores equipped with Coca-Cola Freestyle dispensers can now use their mobile phone to select their preferred drink and instruct the machine to pour it for them, enabling a completely contact-free experience... More
