The Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CBA) has seen the number of monthly digital wallet transactions increase by 90% from 36m in March 2020 to 68m in March this year, with the total value more than doubling from A$2.1bn (US$1.6bn) to A$1bn (US$0.8bn) in the same period... More
- Apple Pay users in the US to get buy now pay later option with iOS 16
- BIS reports on CBDCs in emerging markets
- Moroccan bank launches biometric payment card
- US digital bank introduces contactless payments rings
- Riksbank completes digital currency payments pilot
EU steps up investigation into Apple Pay
The European Commission’s investigation into Apple Pay is “moving ahead on top of an investigation into how the iPhone maker requires software developers to use its in-app purchasing system”, the EU’s competition commissioner Margrethe Vestager has told Bloomberg News. More
Most UK retailers say strong customer authentication is not a key concern for post-pandemic recovery
Only one in six (12.8%) UK merchants rates the introduction of strong customer authentication (SCA) for online payments as a big business concern as the economy recovers from the Covid-19 pandemic, according to a survey published by Signifyd... More
Kazakhstan to pilot central bank digital currency
The National Bank of the Republic of Kazakhstan has published a public consultation document as part of its plans to develop and pilot a central bank digital currency (CBDC). More
German supermarket to trial anonymous checkout-free shopping
Customers at a supermarket in the German city of Cologne owned by retail giant Rewe will soon be able to enter the store by scanning a QR code, selecting the items they wish to buy and paying for them from their mobile phone without needing to scan their purchases or use a checkout... More
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Singapore university to pilot virtual commercial payment card
Staff at the Singapore University of Social Science (SUSS) are to trial a virtual commercial payment card that will enable them to make corporate purchases including software licences, subscriptions and travel passes without needing to use their personal credit or debit cards and then claim reimbursement... More
Visa switches on Apple Pay support in Japan
Consumers in Japan can now add their Visa credit or debit cards to Apple Pay and use them to make in-store, in-app and online payments from their iPhone or Apple Watch... More
Irish banks plan Yippay mobile payments joint venture to compete with new entrants
Bank of Ireland, AIB, Permanent TSB and KBC Ireland are planning to launch a mobile payments service known as Yippay “to rival disruptors such as Revolut”, according to the Irish Independent. More
Bahamas links digital currency to bank accounts
Consumers in the Bahamas will be able to use mobile wallets integrated with the country’s Sand Dollar “like an ATM” and transfer the central bank digital currency to their wallet directly from their bank account, the governor of the Central Bank of The Bahamas, John Rolle, has said... More
Consumers to get option to personalise their digital payment cards
Consumers may soon be able to personalise the payment cards stored in their digital wallets by uploading their own pictures or images of their favourite sports teams, charities and retail brands to them... More
More than 90% of consumers worldwide will consider using digital payments in the next year, Mastercard predicts
More than nine in 10 consumers (93%) will consider using digital payment methods including contactless, QR code and biometric payments as well as cryptocurrency transactions in the next year, according to a Mastercard survey... More
European banks invest €30m in EU rival to Visa and Mastercard
The banks and other institutions backing the development of a unified payment systems for merchants and consumers across Europe have so far invested €30m in the European Payments Initiative, EPI chair Joachim Schmalzl has revealed. More
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Mastercard in talks with PBOC over support for cross-border digital yuan transactions
Mastercard is seeking a role in the development of China’s central bank digital currency (CBDC) by supporting the use of the digital yuan for cross-border transactions and its conversion to and from foreign currencies, according to South China Morning Post (SCMP)... More
Facebook relaunches WhatsApp peer to peer payments in Brazil
WhatsApp users in Brazil can now send money to friends, family and other contacts by attaching a payment to a chat “just as you would attach a photo or video” and validating the transfer with a PIN or their device’s biometrics functionality... More
Apple Pay goes live in Israel
Apple Pay has rolled out in Israel with support for Visa, Mastercard and American Express cards issued by nine major Israeli banks and credit card companies, according to local media outlets... More
Aion Bank onboards personal and business customers via NFC
Consumers, retailers and other business customers can now remotely verify their identity when opening an account or applying for a loan with Belgium-based Aion Bank by scanning the contactless chip embedded in an ID document with their NFC smartphone or other mobile device and validating the information via a facial recognition check... More
Porsche lets owners in Australia find, access and pay for parking from their vehicle
Porsche owners in Australia can now be guided to, gain entry to and make contactless payment for off-street parking in the city of Melbourne directly from their in-vehicle touchscreen using the luxury vehicle manufacturer’s smart parking app... More
Chinese banks unveil CBDC hardware prototypes for multiple use cases
The People’s Bank of China (PBOC) and the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC) have unveiled prototype hardware devices that support the use of the digital yuan central bank digital currency (CBDC) across a range of different use cases... More
Samsung Pay to add support for local currencies in South Korea
Consumers in the South Korean province of Gyeonggi-do will soon be able to make mobile payments using local currencies issued by 28 cities and counties across the region using a local currency easy payment platform... More
Norges Bank to test technical solutions for Norwegian CBDC
Norway’s central bank Norges Bank is to test “various technical solutions for a central bank digital currency (CBDC) over the next two years”, the bank’s CBDC working group has announced in its third project report. More