PNC Pay debuts with on/off switch for digital wallets

Two years after Capital One broke ground in the U.S. as one of the first large banks with a proprietary mobile wallet—followed by Wells Fargo & Co. and others—PNC Financial is joining the trend with PNC Pay, timed to capitalize on some of mobile payments’ latest innovations.

PNC Pay will provide a dashboard enabling customers to keep track of where their PNC credit and debit cards are enrolled for digital payments with the ability to switch them on and off easily, the bank said. PNC is one of the first U.S. banks with this feature built into its mobile payments app, which plays to consumer demand for more control over their credentials in an era of rising card fraud.

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With a gradual rollout taking place over the next few weeks, PNC Pay will enable contactless mobile payments for Android users via host card emulation (HCE), along with the ability to use Zelle for person-to-person payments, a PNC spokesperson said.

PNC Pay also supports routine services within the wallet including deposits, bill payments and transfers between accounts, which—along with Zelle—also are accessible within PNC’s mobile banking app, PNC said.