Mastercard cardholders at Polish bank ING Bank Śląski can now make host card emulation (HCE) based mobile payments using a ‘Mastercard on the Phone’ feature inside the My ING app... More
Mastercard
Australian banks brand non-NFC alternatives to Apple Pay ‘unrealistic’
Relying on Android or alternatives to NFC for successful mobile payment services in a country with one of the world’s largest iPhone market shares and high contactless card use is “unrealistic”, the group of Australian banks seeking access to the iPhone’s NFC functionality say in their latest submission to the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC)... More
KredoBank launches HCE mobile payments in Ukraine
Customers of Ukraine’s KredoBank can now make host card emulation (HCE) based mobile payments by adding Mastercard credit or debit cards to its new KredoPay wallet... More
Sweden becomes first Nordic country to get Samsung Pay
Samsung Pay has launched in beta across Sweden, the first Nordic country to see the mobile payment service rolled out, with support from debit and credit card providers Mastercard, Mastercard SAS, Visa, Eurocard, and banks Nordea and SEB... More
Belgium becomes tenth country to go live with Android Pay
Android Pay has launched in Belgium with support for Mastercard and Visa credit cards from BNP Paribas Fortis, Hello Bank... More
Apple Pay goes live in Ireland with support from Mastercard, Visa and two banks
Apple Pay has been launched across Ireland with support from Mastercard, Visa, KBC and Ulster Bank, allowing customers to make in-store, online and in-app payments using their compatible devices... More
Mastercard analyzes social media payments buzz
Digital wallets were the new way to pay most discussed by consumers on social media in 2016, the 2017 edition of the Mastercard Digital Payments Study has found, with consumers around the world also increasingly interested in the payments possibilities of virtual reality, artificial intelligence, smart home assistants, wearables, and the Internet of Things... More
Turkish retailer adds payments to Messenger bot
Istanbul-based mobile retailer Getir has integrated Mastercard’s Masterpass service into its Facebook Messenger bot, enabling customers to choose products, place their order and pay from within a chat window... More
Samsung Pay to launch in India with support from five Visa and Mastercard issuers — and Paytm
Samsung has begun inviting Galaxy phone owners in India to register for early access to Samsung Pay. Customers can opt to pre-register Axis Bank, HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank and Standard Chartered Bank debit or credit cards and SBI Cards credit cards today with support for American Express and Citibank to follow. Paytm’s market leading mobile wallet will also be supported by the service. More
Mastercard and Visa expand availability of QR payments
Visa’s mVisa QR-based mobile payment service is now live in India, Kenya and Rwanda and will soon be available in Egypt, Ghana, Indonesia, Kazakhstan, Nigeria, Pakistan and Vietnam, the company has announced at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona... More
Mastercard adds bar tab feature to Qkr! mobile payments app
Mastercard has unveiled a new feature for its Qkr... More
Samsung Pay goes live in Malaysia
Samsung Pay has begun rolling out in Malaysia with support from CIMB, Citibank and Standard Chartered, with Hong Leong Bank coming soon... More
Gulf Oil unveils Gulf Pay for mobile payments and special offers at fuel stations
Customers at Gulf Oil fuel stations across select New England and New York markets in the US are to pilot a new mobile payment service that will enable drivers to navigate to the nearest station, pay for fuel at the pump, receive exclusive offers and purchase products inside the convenience store... More
NPCI, Mastercard and Visa unveil standardised QR code mobile payments for India
Indian consumers can now make QR code-based mobile payments using BharatQR, a “low cost, interoperable mobile acceptance solution” backed by the Indian government and developed by Mastercard, Visa and National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI)... More
More than 150,000 Kenyan merchants to get mobile payments with Masterpass QR
More than 150,000 micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) in Kenya will be able to accept in-store mobile payments using QR code technology in 2017, using Mastercard’s Masterpass QR platform... More
Samsung Pay goes live in Thailand
Samsung Pay has begun rolling out across Thailand following its launch through an early access programme in October 2016... More
Apple Pay most popular mobile payment service among US retailers, survey finds
Apple Pay has the largest percentage of supporting US merchants with 36% accepting the mobile payment service today, up from 16% last year, research released by Boston Retail Partners (BRP) reveals... More
Samsung Pay to get Amex support for India launch?
Samsung is partnering with American Express for the launch of Samsung Pay in India, expected in the first half of 2017, according to a source quoted by Mashable... More
Pakistan to add payments to National IDs
Mastercard is to work with the Government of Pakistan’s National Database and Registration Authority (NADRA) to introduce a system that will enable Pakistani citizens to use their identity cards to conduct financial transactions... More
Mobile marketplace offers African farmers promise of richer, cashless harvest
Thousands of small-scale farmers across East Africa will soon be using their feature phones to buy, sell and receive payments for their goods through a mobile app and SMS service developed by Mastercard... More