NatWest is working on the development of a behavioural biometrics solution for Strong Customer Authentication (SCA) that could be used as a replacement for banking passwords, the UK bank has announced... More
Mobile payments
Visa introduces cloud tokens that work across multiple devices
Visa has introduced a new cloud-based token framework that makes it possible for tokens to be enabled “across all of a consumer’s devices” and “are directly integrated with the consumer’s bank”... More
Facebook picks Brazil for first commercial rollout of WhatsApp payments
WhatsApp users in Brazil can now make payments to local merchants and send money to friends and contacts “without leaving their chat”... More
Stocard picks Dejamobile to add payments to mobile loyalty app
PARTNER NEWS: European mobile loyalty wallet leader Stocard has added support for NFC payments to its app as it looks to evolve its digital wallet into an all-in-one payments, banking and shopping service... More
EU opens Apple Pay antitrust investigation
The European Commission has opened a formal antitrust investigation “to assess whether Apple’s conduct in connection with Apple Pay violates EU competition rules”... More
Russian grocery retailer uses cashierless shopping technology to create an automated store-within-a-store
Russian grocery retailer Azbuka Vkusa has converted an aisle within one of its Moscow supermarkets to a cashierless store-within-a store, enabling shoppers to use their mobile phone to check in at the entrance to the aisle, add their shopping to their basket and “simply exit when done”... More
Taiwan to issue stimulus credits to contactless cards and mobile phones
Taiwan is to introduce a Triple Stimulus voucher programme that will enable residents to buy NT$3,000 (US$100) worth of shopping vouchers for NT$1,000 (US$33.34) — or receive an equivalent cashback credit to their card or mobile wallet... More
MTA resumes Omny contactless ticketing installations
The New York Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) has resumed work on the rollout of its Omny contactless payments infrastructure as part of the first phase of its reintroduction of normal services on the city’s subway and local bus services... More
Axis Bank lets Indian merchants accept contactless payments on standard NFC phones
Axis Bank has become the first in India to offer merchants the ability to accept NFC, contactless, QR and remote payments on standard smartphones... More
Octopus lets Hong Kong commuters add their transit card to iPhone and Apple Watch
Octopus transit card holders can now use their iPhone or Apple Watch to pay their fares and make purchases at 35,000 retail outlets across Hong Kong that accept Octopus for payments... More
Taipei light rail offers 50% discounts to mobile payment users
Passengers travelling on Taipei’s Danhai Light Rail service over the next three months will receive a 50% discount on the usual fare when they choose to pay with their mobile phone, operator New Taipei Metro Corporation (NTMC) has announced... More
Samsung Money to go live in the US this summer
A new Samsung Money by SoFi service due to launch in the US “later this summer” will provide “a mobile-first money management experience that brings a cash management account and a Mastercard-branded debit card along with exclusive benefits into Samsung Pay,” the company has announced... More
India to open antitrust investigation into Google Pay?
The Competition Commission of India is looking into allegations that Google is unfairly promoting its mobile payments app in the country, “five sources familiar with the case” have told Reuters... More
Morocco boosts contactless transaction limit by 100%
Morocco’s bank-owned payment acquirer, Centre Monétique Interbancaire (CMI), has raised the contactless transaction limit in the country from 200 to 400 dirhams (US$40) in response to the coronavirus crisis... More
Dejamobile launches white label solution for contactless payments acceptance on standard NFC devices
PARTNER NEWS: Dejamobile has launched a white label solution that enables merchants to be provided with the ability to accept EMV contactless and digital payments on standard NFC phones and tablets — with no additional hardware required... More
Interac reports surge in digital payments adoption
Since mid-March, first-time users of Interac’s e-Transfer service have increased by 43% and the average number of transactions has increased by 9% compared to the same time last year, the Canadian domestic debit card network provider has revealed... More
Bitkom reports major switch in German attitudes to contactless payments
Seven in ten German consumers would now like to have more opportunities to use contactless payments and 75% are trying to avoid cash payments “as often as possible”, a new survey has found... More
Tappy demo shows how brands can add contactless payments to wearables
PARTNER NEWS: A product demo that shows how brands can use Tappy’s wearable payment technology to let customers add their preferred payment card to a wide range of traditional watches, key fobs, rings and other battery-free devices is now available to view in the NFCW Knowledge Centre... More
Transact rolls out Android NFC student IDs at 16 US universities
Campus card solutions provider Transact has rolled out support for Android NFC student IDs, integrated with Google Pay, to 16 US universities... More
Ghana switches on national instant QR mobile payments platform
The Ghana Interbank Payment and Settlement Systems (GhIPSS) has switched on a QR code-based mobile payments platform that uses a nationally harmonised QR symbol and instantly transfers funds from a consumer’s mobile wallet or bank account to the merchant’s... More