KNOWLEDGE CENTRE: A new white paper from STMicroelectronics that sets out the benefits to both device manufacturers and consumers of using NFC to enhance, simplify and secure smart home applications is now available to download from the NFCW Knowledge Centre... More
Passengers using NJ Transit services across the US state of New Jersey who do not have a bank account or a debit or credit card can now use cash to fund the purchase of digital tickets and passes for travel on bus, train or light rail services on their smartphone... More
Passengers using rapid transit services operated by Kochi Metro in the Indian state of Kerala will soon be able to make contactless parking payments with the country’s central bank digital currency (CBDC) as part of a digital rupee pilot programme launched by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI)... More
More than eight in ten consumers in Singapore now use contactless cards (82%) and the widespread use of and preference for contactless card payments is one of the key drivers behind the country’s “shift towards becoming a cashless nation”, according to a Visa report... More
Consumers in Italy used their smartphones or wearable devices to make in-store contactless payments worth a total of €16.3bn (US$17.5bn) in 2022, an increase of 122% compared with 2021, according to the Innovative Payments Observatory (IPO) at Milan Polytechnic University... More
The total annual value of transactions made using central bank digital currencies (CBDC) will exceed US$213bn by 2030, up from US$100m in 2023, according to a Juniper Research forecast... More
The US Department of Agriculture (USDA) is to enable citizens entitled to financial support under its Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) in Illinois, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Missouri and Oklahoma to receive benefits and make NFC or QR code payments for eligible purchases on their mobile device... More
The Central Bank of Egypt (CBE) has issued regulations governing payment card tokenization on mobile apps that enable banks and payment service providers to allow customers to make contactless payments with digital cards stored in mobile wallets including Apple Pay, Google Pay and Samsung Pay... More
More than four in ten transit passengers worldwide say that tapping their own debit or credit card to make open loop contactless fare payments is their preferred fare payment option (42%), followed by tapping a card stored in their mobile wallet (39%), using a closed loop transit card (38%), cash (31%) and app-based payment (29%), according to a Visa survey... More
A consortium of Japan-based financial services and technology providers is to develop a ‘metaverse economic zone’ where consumers will be able to create a digital twin or ‘auto learning avatar’, access digital experiences and authorise payments to merchants and service providers with a digital authentication credential or ‘multi magic passport’ (MMP)... More
Mercedes drivers in Germany can now authorise in-car payments for digital services and on-demand hardware upgrades using a fingerprint sensor on their vehicle’s dashboard without needing to enter a PIN or use an additional mobile device to verify a transaction... More
The UK government has laid out proposals for establishing a framework for the use of trusted and secure digital verification services that will allow consumers to create certified digital identities for use across a range of use cases... More
PARTNER NEWS: NFC testing innovator Cilab has added a feature to its high speed tester that enables NFC terminal manufacturers to quickly and easily test a device’s RF field by making it visible in the form of a shmoo plot, 3D plot and intensity chart... More
The Australia and New Zealand Bank (ANZ) is to pilot the use of a prototype central bank digital currency (CBDC) for offline transactions using pre-loaded contactless cards at RMIT University in the Australian city of Melbourne and Southern Cross University in New South Wales... More
Drivers in the US state of Utah can now opt to create and store a digital version of their driving licence on their Apple or Android smartphone by scanning their physical document and verifying their identity with a selfie using biometric facial recognition technology... More
EXHIBITOR NEWS: Singapore-based Islamic wood-carving specialist Mahajati has selected ixkio’s NFC tag management platform to enable purchasers of its unique artworks to verify the authenticity of the product and provide proof of ownership by scanning an NFC authentication tag with their smartphone... More
Google Wallet has launched in Costa Rica, enabling users to store and use their credit and debit cards, boarding passes, tickets and other digital credentials on their Android NFC smartphone, Wear OS smartwatch or Fitbit device... More
Developing a central bank digital currency (CBDC) system that supports offline transactions on smartphones or standalone custom devices will offer users benefits including enhanced resilience, accessibility, inclusivity and privacy, especially in remote areas without a reliable or affordable internet connection, according to the Bank of Canada... More
The European Central Bank (ECB) has laid out plans for a staggered rollout of a digital euro that would begin with the bank initially releasing the central bank digital currency (CBDC) for use in person-to-person and ecommerce transactions... More
The US Patent and Trademark Office has granted Apple a patent for an “electronic device including palm biometric sensor layer” that would enable users to unlock a device and authenticate other interactions on a smartphone, smartwatch or other wearable by verifying their identity with their palm... More