Garmin has unveiled a GPS-enabled smartwatch that includes an NFC contactless payments service called Garmin Pay which supports cards from both Visa and Mastercard and enables the wearer to “make secure payments from the watch, no phone or wallet required.”... More
Two hundred small businesses are to participate in a pilot that lets them accept contactless payments using just a mobile app on their NFC smartphones... More
Fitness wearable maker Fitbit has launched Ionic, a smartwatch that will combine health and fitness functions with the ability to make contactless Visa, Mastercard and American Express payments as well as payments using the wearer’s Starbucks Card account... More
Dogs aim to take Blue Cross canal walk donations — Wiltshire Times — “Two specially-trained dogs are to take donations on a Blue Cross sponsored canal walk being held over the August bank holiday weekend. Nine-year-old black Labrador Pernod, and her four-year-old daughter, Doris, a yellow Labrador, will accept the contactless payments using a special vest.”
Contactless to account for more than one in two POS transactions globally by 2022 — Juniper Research — “A new study from Juniper Research has found more than half (53%) of global transactions at POS (point of sale) will be contactless within five years, compared to just 15% this year… Adoption in the US would rise sharply over the period, with contactless rising from less than 2% of transactions this year to 34% by 2022.”
British consumers used their mobile phones to spend more than £370m (US$477m) in stores equipped with contactless payments terminals during the first half of 2017, an increase of 336% on the amount spent during the first half of 2016, transaction data analysis conducted by payments processor Worldpay has found... More
UK card expenditure statistics: June 2017 — UK Finance — “There were just under 1.4bn card payments in June, a monthly record and a 12% rise in the last 12 months. This is the highest annual rate of growth in the number of payments since June 2008, driven by a robust rise in online (+20%) and contactless (+143%) purchases… Contactless payments accounted for 34% of all card transactions, while online payments accounted for 13%.”
Nine in ten consumers taking part in the first European trial of a biometric payment card developed by Mastercard say they “would upgrade or probably upgrade” their favourite card to one that includes the biometric security feature if it was available, a survey by issuing bank UniCredit Bulbank has found... More
Soon, walk into metro station without taking your card from pocket — The Times of India — “Chennai Metro Rail Limited has invited tenders to introduce contactless smart cards which can be detected by scanners at stations even if the passenger keeps it in the pocket or a bag. The ticket price will be deducted once the passenger passes by the detector at the entrance to the platforms. These cards may later be used for other modes of transport as well.”
More than half of UK retailers that accept contactless payments would like to see the spending limit raised above the current £30 (US$40) cap, with 37% opting for £50 (US$66) and one in five hoping to see a £100 (US$132) ceiling, research released by Barclaycard ahead of the tenth anniversary of the launch of contactless payments in the UK reveals... More
How Australians pay: Evidence from the 2016 Consumer Payments survey — Reserve Bank of Australia — “Cards were the most frequently used means of payment in the 2016 survey, overtaking cash for the first time. Contactless ‘tap and go’ cards are an increasingly popular way of making payments, displacing cash for many lower-value transactions… Consumers are increasingly using their mobile phones to make online and person-to-person payments.”
Tesla Model 3 has no key, so don’t forget your phone — Road/Show — “For the Model 3, Tesla engineered the car to accept a digital key transmitted through Bluetooth from an owner’s phone… As a back-up, or for valet access, each Model 3 will come with a couple of NFC cards, which can also unlock and start up the car. The cards will unlock the door with a tap on the B-pillar, and start up the car with another tap between the front seats.”
BBVA brings Android Pay to Spain — BBVA – “BBVA and Google today announced the launch of Android Pay in Spain. This payment system will allow BBVA customers to use their Visa and Mastercard cards in order to pay with their mobile phones. Android Pay will be operational in the more than one million businesses in Spain with contactless technology.”
Moneris study reveals 36% contactless payment increase in Canada — MobileSyrup – “Moneris unveiled a 36.29% year-over-year gain, possibly due to Android Pay recently launching in Canada, and with little more than a year since Apple Pay’s full Canadian release… Within the next five and a half months Moneris predicts that 50% of all Canadian transactions will be contactless.”
Customers of US department store chain JCPenney can now add the retailer’s credit card to Apple Pay and make contactless payments at any of the company’s stores nationwide... More
Tech company workers agree to have microchips implanted in their hands — ABC News – “Some workers at a company in Wisconsin will soon be getting microchips in order to enter the office, log into computers and even buy a snack or two with just a swipe of a hand… Three Square Market is footing the bill for the microchips, which cost US$300 each, and licensed piercers will be handling the implantations on August 1.”
Tap-and-go kills the cash cow — Sydney Morning Herald – “Australia has become a nation of tappers, with official figures showing that the card has finally overtaken cash as our most-frequently-used payment method… The Reserve Bank attributes that to several factors, including the widespread rollout of tap-and-go Eftpos functionality. Around one-third of all point-of-sale payments are now made using tap-and-go.”
Dubai’s Nol cards can now be used for payment at 1,000 retail units — Gulf Business — “Dubai’s Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) has announced that Nol cards can now be used to make payments at more than 1,000 selected retail outlets… Nol cards are used to pay for public transport systems such as the Metro, Tram, buses and water taxis… The network of retailers accepting Nol cards is projected to exceed 5,000 by the end of this year.”
Abu Dhabi launches app to track pupils on journey to school — Arabian Business — “Abu Dhabi Education Council (ADEC) and Emirates Transport have launched Hafilaty, an app that enables parents to track their children to and from school… As part of the initiative, Emirates Transport has installed advanced systems, including GPS tracking systems to locate the bus and NFC technology on students’ cards.”
Data collected when a contactless card is used to pay for a train journey is now being used to automatically compensate passengers when their train is delayed by 15 minutes or more, removing the need for travellers to manually file a request for a refund... More