Transport for London (TfL) is testing the use of Bluetooth beacons that work with a mobile app to provide guidance to visually impaired passengers travelling on the London Underground... More
- Bank of China lets taxi drivers accept central bank digital currency payments on NFC mobile phones
- Juniper forecasts 25% increase in POS terminal transaction values by 2028
- STMicroelectronics launches NFC tag chip with elliptic curve cryptography
- NFC Forum survey finds majority of consumers now prefer making payments with their mobile phone
- Hello, NFCW readers!
SXSW to deploy 1,000 beacons
The organizers of the annual SXSW music and film festival are working with Gimbal, RightRound and Urban Airship to place 1,000 Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) beacons around the event’s venues... More
Apple Pay now at 700,000 locations
Apple Pay is now accepted “at nearly 700,000 locations” and “works with over 2,500 banks”, Apple has announced at its Spring Forward launch event... More
No Samsung Pay fees for Korean issuers
No fees will be charged by Samsung to card issuers making use of its new Samsung Pay service in Korea, Business Korea reports, “to help dominate the rapidly-growing mobile payments market”... More
Apple stores hit hardest by Apple Pay fraudsters
Credit card data stolen in recent data breaches at big retailers has led to a wave of fraudulent Apple Pay transactions, reports the Wall Street Journal... More
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Softcard to close down on 31 March
The Softcard mobile wallet service is to close down altogether at the end of March 2015 in the wake of a deal between Google and the three US carriers that founded the NFC payments venture... More
Visa prepares to launch HCE services with multiple banks
Visa is to launch NFC payments services based on host card emulation with “several leading financial institutions around the world” in the coming months, with BBVA and Cuscal already live. Others coming soon include Banco do Brasil, PNC and US Bank. More
CaixaBank lets drivers speak to mobile banking app
Spain’s CaixaBank has launched an app which allows customers to use voice commands to perform simple online banking operations, opening the way for drivers to check balances and initiate transfers as they travel. More
Visa Europe expands on customised tokenization plans, will go live mid-April
“Tokenization does a couple of things brilliantly; one is it really helps on facilitating innovation, facilitating the use, for example, of mobile phones for payments,” Visa Europe’s Sandra Alzetta told NFC World following the payment network’s announcement of plans to launch a customised tokenization platform to European banks in April. “In addition to that, it really helps to further enhance security.” More
US identity fraud drops, but breaches scare consumers
The number of victims of identity fraud in the US decreased 3% to 12.7 million in 2014 and total fraud losses declined to US$16 billion — a decrease of 11% from 2013 — a study from Javelin Strategy & Research has found... More
Optus shows off wearable payments
Australian mobile network Optus has shown off a prototype watch that can be used to make contactless payments as an extension of its Cash by Optus prepaid NFC payment app. More
New Pebble could offer NFC strap
Watch maker Pebble has smashed through a US$500,000 crowdfunding target, raising nearly $16m in a matter of days to produce its new Pebble Time smart watch with a colour display... More
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Qkr! payments at Wagamama
Diners at UK restaurant chain Wagamama can now pay for their meals at their tables using MasterCard’s Qkr... More
Madrid tests NFC ticketing on public transport
Travellers in Spain’s capital will be able to use their NFC phones to pass through ticket barriers as Madrid’s public transport system tests NFC ticketing... More
Pizza Hut could let customers order and pay for pizza from their cars
Pizza Hut is testing a proof-of-concept “connected car” system that would let its customers order and pay for pizza from their vehicle before identifying themselves when arriving at the restaurant through Bluetooth beacons placed in designated parking bays. More
SpotMe app lets Android users spend Apple Pay cash
Android users can spend their iPhone-owning friends’ money using a new app that can capture NFC payment transaction tokens from other devices and hold onto them before spending them later. More
Qualcomm demos 3D fingerprint technology for mobile phones
A fingerprint authentication solution that uses ultrasonic technology to scan through a smartphone cover made of glass, stainless steel, sapphire or plastic as well as contaminants on a finger, such as sweat or condensation, has been unveiled by Qualcomm. The technology can “detect if you are you under very difficult conditions,” product manager Max Hamel has told NFC World. More
Google confirms Android Pay at MWC
Google is building a framework for mobile payments in Android, a senior executive has revealed at Mobile World Congress... More
PayPal readies contactless reader
PayPal is preparing to launch a new version of its PayPal Here card reader that can handle transactions with contactless cards and NFC devices. More
PayPal to buy MCX supplier Paydiant
Paypal is to acquire Paydiant, a white label mobile payments specialist and developer of a platform that allows retailers to incorporate payment, loyalty and offers functionality into their own apps. More