Barclays has opened an online store which will offer users of its Pingit mobile payments service a wide range of wearable payments devices, including watches, jewellery, wristbands and key fobs... More
Barclays opens Pingit wearable payments store
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Chinese airlines to offer NFC baggage tags at Beijing airport
China Eastern Airlines and China Southern Airlines are introducing NFC-enabled electronic baggage tags that let passengers check in their own luggage and then track its location on their mobile phones, China Daily reports... More
Italian rail operator to pilot barrier-free transit ticketing
Trentino Trasporti, the transportation operator for the Italian city of Trento, is to be the first to pilot a new transit ticketing concept that uses sensors placed on trains to calculate and charge passengers for fares by automatically detecting when they get on and off a particular service... More
DHL tracks temperature-sensitive medical supplies with NFC
New logistics technologies introduced at DHL Global Chicago hub — Healthcare Packaging — “Using near field communication (NFC) technology, sensors log in-transit ambient environmental temperature conditions during shipping, functioning at temperatures between -40 and +60 degrees Celsius. The sensors allow uploading of temperature data directly to the DHL mobile app and LifeTrack web portal, making them cost effective and easy to use without the need for specific scanners or devices… DHL has seen a 40% increase in operational capabilities using these scanners.”
Tencent reports 100 million transit ticketing mini-app users
100 million transit riders are paying with WeChat mini-program: Tencent — Caixin Global — “Ride Code allows subway and bus riders to pay for transit fares with QR codes directly upon boarding in various Chinese cities. At subway stations, that means showing your barcode at the turnstile. Riders do not need to visit ticket kiosks as the fare is deducted from their WeChat Pay wallet.”
Samsung lets Canadian merchants accept contactless payments on Galaxy smartphones
Samsung Pay Touch app turns your Galaxy smartphone into a PoS terminal — SamMobile — “Samsung has quietly launched the Samsung Pay Touch app to target small businesses in Canada. The app transforms compatible Galaxy smartphones into POS (point of sale) terminals that can accept contactless payments from customers… The biggest advantage of Samsung Pay Touch is that it doesn’t require any additional hardware to set up. As long as you have a compatible Galaxy smartphone, you can download the app and complete the registration to start using it right away.”
OCBC lets customers use mobile phones to withdraw cash from ATMs
OCBC Bank is first in Singapore to enable cash withdrawals at ATMs using QR codes — OCBC — “OCBC Bank customers can withdraw cash by just scanning a QR code using the OCBC Pay Anyone app, then authenticating the transaction via fingerprint, faceprint or mobile banking login credentials… Using a QR code instead of keying in a PIN is more secure because biometric authentication can be chosen, a more robust security feature than a PIN that can be revealed or stolen. Further, a physical ATM card can be skimmed while a mobile device cannot.”
Co-op extends mobile self-checkout trial to 30 UK supermarkets
Co-op Group expands till-less payment tech to more stores — Co-op Group — “The retailer is extending its pay-in-aisle technology trial, with time-pressed shoppers able to access the easy to use app on their phones and devices in over 30 Co-op food stores… It enables customers to scan products on their own device as they walk around the store, with the cost of the shop deducted from their Apple or Google Pay account with the touch of a button. Without the need to visit a till.”
CBA builds location tracking security into mobile banking app
CBA app wants your location, biometrics in name of security — CIO Australia — “If we see a transaction coming out of Hong Kong but we know from a customer’s phone they’re in Melbourne or Sydney: straight away that gives us an opportunity to spot a discrepancy and block it straight away… If we’re not sure we’ll pop into the app with a question in real time and we ask the customer to help us, and they can swipe or click to say yep I’m comfortable with this or no this is something I don’t recognise.”
Benelux banks raise €20m to turn Payconiq mobile payments app into European rival to Visa and Mastercard
Mobile payments app Payconiq wants to expand in Europe — Ecommerce News Europe — “Our solution is, unlike the well-known payment methods, not dependent on the credit card companies. I don’t see why we couldn’t become the European alternative to Visa or Mastercard. Technically, we are ahead of them.”
National QR standard for mobile payments rolls out in Sri Lanka
Commercial Bank launches ComBank Q+ — Sri Lanka’s first QR based payment app under LankaQR — Commercial Bank of Ceylon — “The Commercial Bank of Ceylon (CBSL) has launched ComBank Q+ — the first Quick Response (QR) based payment app to be launched under LankaQR… LankaQR is the national QR standard for local currency payments introduced by the CBSL.”
ING lets Turkish businesses accept Mastercard payments on NFC mobile phones
Turning smartphones into mobile points of sale — ING — “Turkish small business owners can now use their smartphones to securely accept payments from customers following a pilot by ING and Mastercard. The ‘Tap on Phone’ application allows business owners to use their Android smartphone, tablet or other smart devices as mobile points of sale (POS), replacing the traditional cash register or electronic POS terminal… Any Android-based smartphone or tablet can be transformed into a mobile POS with the ‘Tap on Phone’ app and an activated near-field communication.”
East reports on Apple Pay fraud in Europe
East publishes European fraud update — European Association for Secure Transactions — “Two countries reported mobile wallet fraud in relation to Apple Pay. One reported that mobile wallets are fast becoming the new money mules — fraudsters are enrolling cards that are not yet associated with a specific wallet. Another country reported that fraudsters are obtaining security codes through phishing, with which they can then install a mobile banking app on their own smartphone, using the victim’s data.”
Samsung partners with Korean banks and carriers to launch blockchain mobile ID platform
Consortium launches blockchain-based digital ID in S Korea — Yonhap News — “A group of major tech companies and financial institutions have joined hands to launch a blockchain-based digital identity platform available on smartphones… Samsung Electronics Co, three mobile carriers — SK Telecom Co, KT Corp and LG Uplus Corp — KEB Hana Bank, Woori Bank and Koscom, an IT subsidiary of the main stock exchange, signed an agreement to jointly develop a mobile application for the digital ID platform.”
Samsung Pay adds in-app loan and credit card applications in India
Samsung partners with Paisabazaar.com to offer financial products on Samsung Pay — Paisabazaar — “Paisabazaar.com, India’s largest online marketplace for financial products, today announced its partnership with Samsung… Samsung Pay users can apply for credit cards and personal loans from the platform. The move will enable millions of existing and potential Samsung Pay users to get the benefit of seamlessly opting for a host of financial services.”
Uber reports on adoption of in-app transit ticketing in Denver
Uber’s move into transit ticketing has resulted in a “strong initial performance” with more than 1,200 Regional Transportation District (RTD) tickets sold through the Uber app since the service launched in Denver in May and growth “averaging 42% each week during the rollout period”... More
Juniper forecasts rapid growth in mobile-first digital government IDs
Digital ID platforms to be used by 5bn people in 2024, as emerging economies go mobile-first — Juniper Research — “The number of people using government-issued digital identity credentials will grow by over 150% from an expected 1.7bn in 2019 to over 5bn in 2024… Mobile ID schemes take the lead over digital identity cards, with a third more users relying on apps compared to cards in the next five years.”
7-Eleven Japan halts QR payments rollout after hackers steal $500k in two days
Seven-Eleven mobile pay hack hits Japan’s drive to go cashless — Nikkei Asian Review — “Japan’s second-largest retail group by sales on Monday rolled out 7pay, which lets users make purchases with a smartphone app at Seven-Eleven Japan’s roughly 21,000 stores nationwide… By early Thursday, Seven & i had confirmed about 55 million yen ($510,000) stolen from 900 or so 7pay users. The company has in effect suspended the service by stopping users from adding money to their accounts.”
Telekom Slovenije launches mobile wallet that supports NFC, QR, P2P, bill splitting and transit ticketing payments
Telekom Slovenije launches the Valu smart wallet — Telekom Slovenije — “Valu smart wallet is available in Slovenia as a mobile app from 13 June, and combines in one place mobile payment services, transfer of funds between users, splitting the bill, as well as identification and use of local infrastructure services, such as purchasing Slovenian Railways train tickets… Valu also supports payments with a QR code (on Android and iOS devices) or NFC technology (Android devices).”
Uber leverages open banking to provide in-app financial services to drivers in Mexico
BBVA, in alliance with Uber, launches first banking product in Mexico that operates in third party app — BBVA — “For the first time we are offering a BBVA product that will ‘live’ in a third party’s platform. In other words, we are bringing the bank to our partner, who in turn is bringing us to their drivers and delivery partners, so they can take advantage of all the benefits that the bank has to offer, all with a single click.”