UnionPay QR code payment debuts in North America — UnionPay International — “UnionPay International announced today that it has partnered with Bank of China (Canada) in enabling all the stores of Foodymart in Canada to accept UnionPay QR code payment… Some food and beverage merchants in California, the US, have recently started accepting UnionPay QR code payment too… It is expected that the number of merchants accepting UnionPay QR code payment in North America will reach 5,000 within this year.”
USA
PayPal takes its Venmo P2P service in-store with new debit card
Take your balance shopping with Venmo card — Venmo — “With the Venmo card, you can use your Venmo balance in more places… Low Venmo balance? We’ll use your linked funding source to reload your Venmo balance so you can make that card purchase… For those with Venmo notifications enabled, you’ll be notified on your phone with each swipe. And, we aim to alleviate the panic that comes with losing a card: just a few taps in the app, and boom — your card is disabled.”
Dollar General lets customers check out on their mobile phones
Dollar General pilots mobile checkout app — Progressive Grocer — “Tennessee-based Dollar General is the latest food retailer and first dollar-store chain to move into mobile checkout… Users will receive a receipt immediately via the app and via email. Any digital coupons are applied automatically when customers scan items, and the app alerts users regarding any additional discounts or promotions.”
US merchants increase support for NFC in stores, cut back on Apple Pay and Google Pay online
New survey finds fewer merchants accepting Apple Pay — Kount — “Support is up across the board for near field communication (up from 29% to 37%) and other mobile payments at the physical point-of-sale… Online merchant support for Apple Pay has gone down from 48% to 35%, Google Pay (previously Android Pay), is down from 38% to 25%, support for PayPal increased (from 48% to 64%) while 10% accept AliPay and 10% accept other e-wallets. The share of merchants who accept Samsung Pay, Visa Checkout, MasterPass, and Chase Pay all stayed constant from last year.”
Apple Pay runs ‘Lose your wallet’ promotion in New York City
Lose your wallet — Apple — “Use Apple Pay to get exclusive offers for a limited time in Greenwich Village, Nolita, Park Slope, and Williamsburg.”
US financial institutions pilot dynamic CVV cards
Worldpay tests dynamic CVV cards in anticipation of broader availability — Digital Transactions — “Worldpay is testing the Motion Code-enabled credit and debit cards with two undisclosed credit unions and a bank before broader availability, expected later this year. The hope is to make online shopping more secure… A dynamic CVV means a criminal may obtain the card number, but will be unable to verify the CVV because it will have changed.”
Blackboard to implement student IDs on iPhone and Apple Watch
Blackboard bringing contactless student IDs to Apple Wallet for campuses nationwide — Blackboard — “With Blackboard Mobile Credentials, student credentials in Apple Wallet offer secure access to facilities, residence halls and more, as well as payments for dining, laundry, vending and retail… The ability to add student IDs to Wallet will launch with Duke University, the University of Alabama, and the University of Oklahoma this fall. Johns Hopkins University, Santa Clara University and Temple University will bring the capability by end of year and it will expand to additional campuses in the future.”
Starbucks unveils prepaid card that lets customers earn rewards at any Visa merchant
Starbucks and Chase introduce Starbucks Rewards Visa Prepaid Card — Starbucks — “Today, Starbucks and Chase announced the availability of the Starbucks Rewards Visa Prepaid Card, the first prepaid or debit product where you can earn Stars outside of Starbucks.”
Hyundai demos in-car payments with Chevron, Applebee’s and ParkWhiz
Hyundai and Xevo team up with Chevron, Applebee’s and ParkWhiz to showcase in-car payment at TU-Automotive Detroit — Hyundai Motor America — “With this technology, Hyundai expects to be able to offer customers the ability to: Find and pay for gas at participating Chevron- and Texaco-branded stations; Order and pay for Applebee’s To Go; Find, reserve and pay for parking with ParkWhiz.”
McDonald’s to roll out self-service kiosks across the US
McDonald’s to add self-order kiosks to 1,000 stores each quarter — CNBC — “McDonald’s will upgrade 1,000 stores with kiosk and mobile order technology every quarter for the next eight to nine quarters. International markets like Canada, Australia and the UK are already fully integrated with kiosk service and mobile ordering. McDonald’s has also been exploring delivery in the US in an attempt to meet customer demand and changes in how consumers want to get their food.”
Apple to add support for campus cards to iPhones and Apple Watch
Students at six US universities will be able to use their iPhone or Apple Watch to replace their student ID card from later this year, Apple has announced at its Worldwide Developers Conference. More
Mastercard to pilot cardless ATM withdrawals
It’s app, tap and go at ATMs thanks to Mastercard and Diebold Nixdorf — Mastercard — “Here’s how it works: Consumers open their bank’s app on their smartphone. They use the app to find nearby ATMs, choose the amount they want to withdraw and see the associated fees. Once at the ATM, they quickly snap or tap, often by scanning a QR code, authenticate using optional biometrics on device, and take the dispensed cash.”
Apple Pay adds ‘order ahead’ support
Apple Pay tests ‘order ahead’ for drinks at music festivals — Techcrunch — “Last week’s BottleRock music festival near San Francisco was the first to try a new “order ahead with Apple Pay” feature that Apple hopes to bring to more events. You just open the festival’s app, select the closest concession stand, choose your drinks, Apple Pay with your face or fingerprint and pick up the beverages at a dedicated window with no queue.”
Citigroup to use rewards to turn credit card customers into digital bank account holders
Citigroup won’t use high deposit rates to win digital accounts: executive — Reuters — “Citigroup Inc does not plan to use high deposit rates to attract customers to its new digital bank accounts when it begins marketing this fall, the chief of its global consumer bank said on Tuesday… Instead, the bank will market the accounts nationally to its credit card customers, such as holders of its Double Cash card and cards it issues for American Airlines Group, and Costco Wholesale Corp and Home Depot Inc… Bird said, for example, that offering additional American Airlines mileage credits will attract stable deposits to the bank.”
Apple Pay boss explains how it promotes adoption in the US
This woman is fattening the Apple Pay wallet — Fast Company — “We essentially put on an Apple Pay street fair. Local merchants who accept Apple Pay present an offer — maybe a dollar off your ice cream. We bring in food trucks and [feature] fun activities… We’ve also done event-type marketing at music festivals. Last year at BottleRock [a music and wine festival in Napa Valley], we worked with the event organizers to create Apple Pay-only lines. When you go to a concert, the last thing you want is to stand in line to pay for your beer.”
Retailers raise concerns over card networks’ plans for a single buy button
Visa, Mastercard push for one-click ordering. Retailers say ‘not so fast’ — The Wall Street Journal — “Representatives of large retailers including Walmart Inc and Home Depot Inc met with federal regulators this week to raise concerns about a new online payment initiative that Visa Inc and Mastercard Inc are preparing to roll out… Retailers’ main concern with combining the buttons is that merchants won’t be able to route their debit card transactions to lower-cost networks.”
Hyundai to add support for payments in cars
Hyundai and Xevo partner to put your wallet on wheels — Hyundai Motor America — “Right now, you can find and pay for things with your smartphone, smartwatch or computer. With this in mind, Hyundai is developing technology that will allow customers to find and pay for coffee, gas and parking using their car’s infotainment screen.”
Starbucks continues to lead the US mobile payments market
23.4 million US consumers aged 14 and over will use Starbucks’ mobile app to make a purchase at the point of sale at least once every six months this year, research from eMarketer has found... More
Bank of America adds AI assistant to mobile banking app
Bank of America delivers first widely available AI–driven virtual financial assistant — Bank of America — “Bank of America is rolling out the first widely available AI-driven virtual assistant of its kind in financial services, Erica, to its 25 million mobile clients… Erica is designed to learn from clients’ behaviours over time, helping them accomplish simple to complex tasks within the mobile banking app with easy-to-follow prompts. Clients can interact with Erica any way they choose, including texting, talking or tapping options on their screen.”
US Bank to test connected fleet car payments
Mastercard and US Bank Voyager put fleet managers in the driver’s seat — Mastercard — “Mastercard today unveiled a new service to automatically integrate fuel and maintenance data from a connected car’s dashboard into the payment process… US Bank will be the first to pilot these new features, giving fleet managers the flexibility, visibility and control to manage day-to-day expenses.”