SIX Payment offers mobile virtual card in Austria

Cashless payments provider SIX Payment Services has launched a virtual PayLife credit card for making mobile payments in Austria.

Virtual cards have been gaining favor in the payments industry as a secure method to initiate mobile transactions or as a one-time-use token to replace physical cards for delayed billing, as in hotel settings. Increasingly, virtual cards stored in a mobile wallet represent another security layer that complements EMV chip cards at the physical point of sale.

“The mobile credit card is the next big step in cashless payment," Thomas Csipkó, managing director and head of financial industry services Austria for SIX, stated in a Feb. 3 press release. "Mobility has become an integral part of our society as people always have their smartphone close by, so mobile payments have become the future of the industry.”

The SIM-based PayLife 0100 is a virtual option in the SIX Paylife plastic card portfolio. It operates as a virtual card on Android 4.1 or higher compatible mobile phones for tap-and-pay purchases at any Eftpos terminal displaying a contactless symbol, or for online purchases in the same manner as a physical card.

Switzerland-based SIX says existing PayLife card customers can sign up for the virtual card via the online service portal "myPayLife." The first year is free of charge, after which it costs 0.90 euros per month, the payment processor said.