Apple Pay Cash is rolling out for iOS 11.2 users — The Verge — “Apple was forced to release iOS 11.2 on Saturday, which was a little earlier than planned, due to a software bug. Now, Apple Pay Cash — one of the marquee features of the update — is being activated for users… The new feature is only available in the US for now, though.”
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Millennials back biometrics and AI for payments
Millenials driving demand for AI and biometric security — Vocalink — “77% of millennials thought that new AI technologies such as virtual assistants and hands-free speakers like Amazon Echo and Google Home are appealing as payment devices. In addition, 28% of millennials have used fingerprint technologies to verify payments and 35% of the group now believes that fingerprint technology is the most secure method of verification followed by iris scanning at 22%.”
Bank of Canada reports on the potential of digital currencies
Central Bank Digital Currency: Motivations and implications — Bank of Canada — “This paper addresses the question of whether a central bank should issue digital currency that could be used by the general public. It begins by discussing the possible motivations for a central bank to issue a digital currency. The paper then sets out a benchmark central bank digital currency (CBDC) with features that are similar to cash. The implications of such a digital currency are explored, focusing on central bank seigniorage, monetary policy, the banking system and financial stability, and payments.”
Samsung Pay to add social sharing features?
You may soon be able to share your Samsung Pay transactions — SamMobile — “Samsung has built a feature for Samsung Pay that allows users to view a list of all their past transactions and share them to various social networks, including Facebook and Twitter, according to a patent spotted on Kipris’ database. Samsung Pay Story, which the firm describes as a ‘system for sharing buying experiences,’ is expected to be introduced in a future update for Samsung Pay, in an attempt to spread awareness of the payment platform using social media.”
Octopus adds QR payments for taxi rides in Hong Kong
Hong Kong e-payment operator Octopus launches QR code service, aiming to get city’s 40,000 taxi drivers off cash — South China Morning Post — “Hong Kong cashless payment operator Octopus has launched a QR code service aimed at small merchants and the city’s 40,000 taxi drivers, who have long been reluctant to accept anything but cash. The new payment method, which only requires a smartphone on each side of the transaction, eliminates the need for merchants to install Octopus card readers, which at certain locations are bound by technical limitations.”
Amazon to accept payments by voice on Alexa devices
Amazon Alexa skills to accept payments — VentureBeat — “Developers and businesses making skills for Amazon’s Alexa will soon be able to accept Amazon Pay for purchases directly within voice apps from the Alexa Skills Store… Initial skills categories to accept Amazon Pay include donations, restaurants, and event ticketing.”
Paytm CEO sets out plans to become the world’s largest digital bank
Alibaba-backed Paytm aims to become world’s largest digital bank — Bloomberg — “Paytm Payments Bank aims to create the world’s largest digital bank with 500m accounts, envisioning an online financial services provider of everything from wealth management to credit cards and stock market trading… The bank grew out of Paytm’s digital wallet, which amassed over a hundred million customers after India took high-denomination bills — or nearly 90% of the value of cash — out of circulation last November.”
Black Friday figures show US consumers are moving to EMV but mobile payments usage remains low
Dip, swipe or tap? How consumers paid on Black Friday, by the numbers — Cayan — “Our study found EMV to be the most popular payment method: 73% of shoppers paid with their chip cards while 18% paid with magstripe… Only 1% of shoppers opted to pay with their phones, up from just 0.6% in 2016.”
Eurosmart: 10bn secure elements will be shipped in 2018
Digital security industry to pass the 10bn mark in 2018 for worldwide shipments of secure elements — Eurosmart — “The secure element market continues to increase in volume to reach exceptional figures worldwide, passing in 2018 the threshold of 10bn shipments. We forecast a steady growth for 2017 (+3.3%) and the market will keep growing in 2018.”
UK government unveils plans for smart ticketing on railways
Connecting people: A strategic vision for rail — Department for Transport — “Our aim for 2018 is that, by the end of the year, both ITSO and barcode tickets will be accepted for travel on almost all of the network… We also expect much of the industry to offer smart cards that can be held in digital ‘wallets’ on mobile phones… We expect in the medium-term wider use of mobile phone-based ticketing, and in the longer-term to explore options that don’t require a physical check of tickets.”
Acuity forecasts a trillion biometric transactions in the cloud by 2022
Biometrics in the cloud to authenticate more than one trillion transactions annually by 2022 — Acuity Market Intelligence — “By 2022 more than 5.5bn biometrically-enabled mobile devices will create a global platform that supports one trillion cloud-based biometric transactions annually… Acuity projects annual biometric transaction revenue will increase from US$474m in 2017 to $18bn in 2022 exceeding a 100% CAGR.”
Juniper forecasts 375m NFC ticketing users by 2022
NFC mobile ticketing users to reach 375 million users by 2022, despite a slow start — Juniper Research — “The number of mobile users adopting NFC ticketing will exceed 375 million by 2022, up from an estimated 122 million in 2017. While there is rapid growth in NFC ticketing in European markets, Juniper has scaled back NFC ticketing adoption in many other markets, such as the US, India, and Africa, due to the lack of available services and infrastructure.”
Australia’s Bendigo Bank adds Apple Pay
Bendigo Bank announces Apple Pay support in Australia — MacRumours — “Account holders in Australia can now use Apple Pay with their Bendigo Blue Bank cards… Bendigo and Adelaide Bank was one of several banks that lost a fight in March to gain access to the NFC chip used in iPhones so they could offer their own integrated digital wallets to customers.”
Forum publishes updated NFC technical specs
NFC Forum publishes 2017 technical specification release — NFC Forum — “The 2017 Technical Specifications Release comprises 21 new or updated near field communication technical specifications… The specifications feature the latest NFC technology and usability upgrades that significantly impact and advance functionality in a number of key areas for consumers and businesses.”
ECB survey finds cash still dominates payments in the euro zone
Euro zone consumers still addicted to cash when they buy — Reuters — “Cash still dominates consumer payments in the euro zone, even as many Western economies are rapidly moving towards electronic payments, a survey published by the European Central Bank showed on Friday… The figures indicate that the euro zone is one of the slowest among big Western economies in giving up cash, trailing countries like the United States, Britain, Australia and Canada.”
Bangkok street food vendors switch to mobile payments
Bangkok’s street food vendors are embracing mobile payments — Travel Wire Asia — “Street food vendors in Bangkok are embracing the digital revolution by offering e-payment methods for cashless transactions via smartphones… Vendors in the capital Bangkok are offering cashless payments after the Bank of Thailand (BOT) gave the green light for five banks to implement electronic payment systems using Quick Response (QR) barcodes.”
Starling Bank integrates third party rewards into open banking platform
Starling and Yoyo Wallet: Enabling loyalty with open banking — Starling Bank — “With any other bank, in order to collect loyalty points you would have to manually pay using the Yoyo app using a QR code scanner. However we have created an experience together with Yoyo, using our APIs, which means you don’t need to use any separate apps to pay. You just need to securely connect your Yoyo account to your Starling account from the Yoyo app and allow Yoyo to view your Starling account transactions. You will then be able to collect loyalty points whenever you use your Starling card, Apple Pay or Fitbit Pay at a merchant partner.”
Sberbank to build ID platform that supports face, voice and retina biometrics
Sberbank and VisionLabs to build biometric identification platform — Sberbank — “Sberbank announces the signing of a deal to acquire a block of shares in VisionLabs, a global leader of the facial recognition market… The investment in VisionLabs is a major first step by Sberbank to build a biometrics platform of Sberbank’s ecosystem, involving face, voice and retina identification, as well as other biometric factors… This will allow the creation of a unique biometric identifier that will let Sberbank clients access any service.”
Messaging app Line reports 40m mobile payment users
A Line Pay milestone: 10 million transactions monthly — Line — “Line announced today that Line Pay, a ‘smartphone wallet’ service for the Line platform, has reached 10m global transactions per month as of the end of October 2017. Along with that major milestone, Line Pay has also achieved ¥55bn (approximately US$482m) worth of transactions monthly — or some ¥300bn cumulative from Jan 1 to Nov 2, 2017… Line Pay has also reached 40 million global registered users.”
Hong Kong transit operator to test WeChat Pay and Alipay
Contactless competition: WeChat Pay is coming to Hong Kong’s MTR, and Alipay may not be far behind — South China Morning Post — “Commuters on Hong Kong’s MTR will soon be given a new quick payment option as the railway operator has partnered with the mainland’s second-largest mobile payment provider WeChat Pay, it announced on Thursday. WeChat Pay’s main rival, Alipay, said it would follow suit in the ‘near future’… While the initiative arguably benefits mainland tourists more than Hongkongers, it breaks a 20-year stronghold by the contactless Octopus card on how train fares can be paid for.”