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United Kingdom-based Barclaycard said Wednesday it plans to issue at least 1 million contactless payment cards to British consumers by the end of the year as more merchants and consumers embrace the technology. The card-issuance goal comes a year after the launch of Barclaycard's OnePulse, a "three-in-one" payment card that enables cardholders to make retail purchases and pay fares on transport in London. But questions remain about whether consumers are embracing OnePulse and other forms of contactless payment in the United Kingdom as eagerly as backers had expected. In fact, UK-based payments group APACS recently reported that Barclays and other banks had issued 340,000 contactless payment cards by May, far fewer than the 5 million contactless cards officials projected by the end of 2008 (CardLine Global, 23 July). On Wednesday, a Barclaycard spokesperson declined to say how many contactless cards the company already had issued, to comment on the APACS figures, or to clarify whether the acceptance and use of contactless payments in the United Kingdom have met Barclaycard's expectations. "Retailers and consumers have shown confidence in both our brand and our contactless products, and thousands are now experiencing the benefits of this secure and convenient payment method," the spokesperson says. "Our presence is set to surge with announcements we expect to make in the next few months, and it won't be long before most of Britain is using contactless." Barclaycard has issued no contactless cards except for the OnePulse card. but that is "set to change in the coming weeks and months," the spokesperson adds.
