Employees at UK bank Barclays and Barclaycard’s London office have begun piloting a new payment concept that allows them to buy low-value goods in the staff restaurant by scanning the barcode on the items using their smartphone and completing the purchase “with a single click” without needing to visit the physical checkout. More
Travel for free on the tube using a Lucozade bottle — Silicon — “Free Lucozade bottles with a contactless chip at the base will be handed out at Oxford Circus station and can be used to pay for a single journey on London’s subterranean railway network. Passengers simply tap the bottle at the gates as if they were using a normal card.”
Public-private sector digital currency experiment releases results of phase II — Payments Canada — “The Bank of Canada, along with Payments Canada, R3 and seven commercial banks, today disclosed the results of phase II of Project Jasper, an experimental wholesale interbank payment system, using digital ledger technology (DLT)… The results show that, despite progress made, underpinning an entire wholesale payments system with DLT still faces many hurdles.”
Carnival Corporation to offer Alipay payment services onboard its fleet in Asia — Carnival Corporation — “Carnival Corporation’s first and largest brand in China – Costa Cruises – will give passengers the option to use their existing Alipay accounts as a payment method for cabin folios. All onboard spending – including shopping, activities, excursions, food and drinks – will be added to each guest’s cabin folio as the purchase is made.”
QR codes make late entry into under-banked Cambodia — The Phnom Penh Post — “The technology remains relatively unknown in Cambodia but several players in the financial sector are looking to transform the payment market by introducing Cambodia’s young and technology savvy population to QR code applications.”
Keep up to date: Get NFCW's headlines by email every Wednesday
Contactless donation points have been set up across the UK city of Bristol to let passersby donate £2 (US$2.57) to the Safer off the Streets (SOS) initiative by tapping their contactless card against the contactless terminals housed inside the units. More
Visa upgrades Verified by Visa technology to enhance security and simplify online payments — Visa — “The upgrade will deliver rich data to financial institutions and merchants to better authenticate consumers and reduce fraud on transactions made via a mobile or desktop browser, app, or connected device… Current Visa rules for merchant-attempted transactions using 3-D Secure will extend to the updated version beginning April 2019.”
OCBC Bank launches cashless QR code payments with its first standalone mobile payments app — OCBC Bank — “The new standalone OCBC Pay Anyone app brings together all OCBC Pay Anyone services and enhancements – peer-to peer e-payments, QR code payments and access to OCBC Pay Anyone integrated with Apple iPhone’s Siri and iMessage – into a fast and easy onestop access to e-payments.”
Google introduces buy button in search results — Search Engine Journal — “Google has introduced a Purchases on Google beta program which allows qualifying merchants to add a ‘Buy’ button to search ads… Clicking on the ‘Buy’ button will send Google Wallet users to a Google-hosted page where the product can be purchased.”
The modern plan for digital identity in Australia and beyond — Secure ID News — “A recent report from Australia Post outlines a forward-thinking plan for a nationwide digital identity initiative… Australia Post is proposing a solution that puts the user in control of their identity and attributes.”
Some 2,000 Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) beacons have been installed across London’s Gatwick Airport to provide an indoor navigation system and an augmented reality wayfinding service so that passengers can be shown directions in the camera view of their mobile device. More
Lotte Card introduces ‘pay with your palm’ — Korea JoongAng Daily — “Lotte Card’s Hand Pay allows customers to pay using an individual’s distinct vein pattern on the palm as identification… Hand Pay maximizes convenience when paying because customers do not need credit cards or even smartphones.”
Keep up to date: Get NFCW's headlines by email every Wednesday
Debit cards set to overtake cash in 2018, three years earlier than expected — Payments UK — “Rapid growth in the use of contactless cards means cash will be overtaken as Britain’s most frequently used payment method by the end of 2018… By 2018, when debit cards are forecast to overtake cash, 13.4 billion debit card payments are predicted, of which 4.6 billion (or one in three) are expected to be contactless.”
Digital, decisive and drone-ready: American Express commissioned study shows Gen Z’s customer experience expectations — American Express — “33% of Gen Z respondents have used a device specific mobile wallet (i.e. Apple Pay, Samsung Pay or Android Pay) in the last three months, compared to only 22% of Gen Y.”
The EU Agency for Network and Information Security (ENISA) is calling on the European Commission to define a policy framework ensuring minimal requirements for the security of Internet of Things (IoT) devices along with the development of mandatory staged requirements for security and privacy to give stakeholders a “level playing field” in implementing trust into connected devices and IoT systems. More
Google and Stripe eye a slice of UPI pie in India — Economic Times — “Google is preparing to introduce its digital wallet, Android Pay, in India this year, anchoring the platform to the government-backed Unified Payments Interface as are other global companies including Stripe and WhatsApp… Google has started testing UPI on its Android Pay platform, said one person aware of the developments.”
PARTNER NEWS: A 10-page guide that explores how Samsung Pay works and its key benefits is now available to download from the NFC World Knowledge Centre... More
Bank of America enhances customer choice: Provides secure and reliable access to data — Bank of America — “Bank of America is making updates to its Security Center and working with multiple financial data aggregators to provide customers the ability to simply and securely connect data from their Bank of America accounts to third-party financial management applications.”
Phillips 66 unveils new mobile platform at Momentum Conference — P97 Networks — “The new platform will connect retail fueling consumers to Phillips 66, Conoco, and 76 locations through a mobile app using a dynamic station finder, enabling a mobile payment wallet and delivering contextual commerce digital offers… The ‘Mobile Connect Experience’ is driven by P97’s PetroZone.”
More than 2bn chip cards were shipped globally by Smart Payment Association (SPA) members in 2016, representing an increase of 4% from 2015, the trade body reveals, with contactless cards accounting for more than 50% of shipments in most regions... More