Audi drivers in North America will soon be able to use a factory-installed RFID module to make in-vehicle toll payments across the country... More
Payments
Central banks set out ground rules for digital currencies
A working group set up by seven central banks and the Bank for International Settlements (BIS) has laid out a set of ground rules for the successful issuance of central bank digital currencies (CBDCs)... More
Ann Arbor transit authority joins regional mobile ticketing service
Passengers using public transport in the greater Ann Arbor area of Michigan in the USA can now buy tickets and passes on services operated by TheRide area transportation authority using the EZfare mobile ticketing app... More
S&P reports on the mobile payments market in China
While Alipay and WeChat Pay have by far the largest number of mobile payments users in China overall, younger and more affluent consumers are more likely to use less well known services such as Du Xiaoman Pay and QQ Wallet, an in-depth market analysis by S&P Global has found... More
Digital wallet user base to increase to 4bn by 2024
The number of digital wallet users globally will increase from 2.3bn in 2019 to 4bn in 2024 and global non-cash transactions will grow to nearly 1.1tn in 2023 from 708.5bn in 2019, according to the World Payments Report 2020... More
ECB launches feasibility study into instant cross-currency merchant payments in Europe
Swedish consumers could be able to make and receive low-cost instant cross-currency transactions to and from any euro area country via the Target Instant Payment Settlement (TIPS) platform once the Swedish kronor joins the platform in May 2022... More
PBOC reports results of central bank digital currency pilot
More than 113,000 Chinese consumers have now used a digital wallet supporting “multiple payment methods, including barcode, facial recognition and tap-and-go transactions” to conduct a transaction using China’s new central bank digital currency, the People’s Bank of China has revealed. More
Pasmo adds support for Apple Pay Express Transit in Japan
Pasmo transportation card holders in Japan can now use Apple Pay Express Transit to pay for their transit fares and other Pasmo-supported transactions using their iPhone or Apple Watch... More
Renfe to roll out contactless ticketing across Spain’s suburban rail network
Passengers using suburban rail services in Spain’s 12 largest metropolitan areas will soon be able to use their physical or digital contactless bank card to pay for their fares on EMV readers installed in station turnstiles... More
Venmo combines contactless and QR payments on a single credit card
Users of PayPal-owned P2P payments app Venmo can now apply for a credit card that includes both a contactless payments chip and a printed QR code that they can use to receive P2P payments and share bills with friends... More
German cooperative bank pilots NFC kiosks that turn branches into one-stop service points
Customers of Volksbank Raiffeisenbank in Germany are taking part in the pilot of a self-service terminal designed to drive new revenue streams by making a wide range of additional services available in bank branches... More
European Central Bank sets out case for a digital euro
The introduction of a digital euro “would support Europe’s drive towards continued innovation”, “strengthen the international role of the euro” and provide consumers with “free access to a simple, universally accepted, risk-free and trusted means of payment”, according to a new report published by the European Central Bank (ECB)... More
Transport for West Midlands unveils plans for regional smart ticketing system
Public transportation users in the West Midlands will be able to use a new ‘tap and cap’ smart ticketing platform to make contactless payments for their journeys across the UK region’s entire rail, bus and tram network by 2022, according to plans revealed by Transport for West Midlands (TfWM)... More
Mastercard to add merchant logos to transaction records
Mastercard users will soon be able to more easily identify and verify whether payments recorded on their online statements are legitimate as the card issuer starts linking merchant logos to any transactions a user has made with participating companies... More
IDC: One in two wearables to include contactless payments support
Global shipments of wearable devices will reach a total of 396m units this year and increase to 637.1m in 2024, with the proportion of those offering support for contactless payments set to rise to nearly 50% by the end of the year, International Data Corp (IDC) predicts... More
Google Pay adds bill splitting, movie bookings and scratchcard rewards in Singapore
Google Pay users in Singapore can now divide bill payments between groups of family and friends, book cinema tickets and receive rewards via virtual scratchcards... More
Dubai adds transit card top-ups to S’hail mobility app
Passengers on Dubai’s public transport network using a Nol transit card to pay for their journeys can now top up the card from the Dubai Roads and Transport Authority’s S’hail travel app... More
Moscow Metro adds support for Huawei Pay
Passengers on the Moscow Metro system can now use NFC-enabled Huawei and Honor smartphones to make contactless payments for their fares with Huawei Pay at every station on the Russian capital’s network, Tdaily.ru reports... More
Amazon lets customers pay with their palm at two US retail stores
Customers shopping at two Amazon Go outlets in Seattle, USA, can now gain access to the convenience stores and pay for their purchases by simply placing their palm over a contactless palm scanning device installed at the entrance... More
Samsung lets German customers link any bank account to Samsung Pay
Samsung device owners in Germany can now link a personal account at “almost any” German bank to Samsung Pay and then use a virtual Visa debit card to make mobile payments in-store... More