15 Mobile Wallets Sticking with NFC

Published January 3, 2014 4:09 PM

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Updated October 20, 2016 10:41 AM

1 Min Read

Cloud-based wallets, QR code wallets and other software-based wallets seem to be shoving Near Field Communication hardware out of the spotlight. But reports of the death of NFC, which enables contactless payments from many mobile devices, have been greatly exaggerated. (Image: ShuterStock)

The headquarters of CaixaBank SA, also known as La Caixa, stands beyond residential apartments in Barcelona, Spain, on Tuesday, April 23, 2013. Spain is trying stop the brain drain as it seeks to wean its economy from its dependency on tourism and construction. Photographer: David Ramos/Bloomberg

David Ramos/Bloomberg

La Caixa

La Caixa is joining forces with Telefonica, Vodafone and Orange in what it describes as the first time a European bank is launching a mobile payment system supported by the market's leading telcos. The NFC wallet, which supports Visa Europe payments, would target the Spanish market at first. (Image: Bloomberg News)

Commonwealth Bank of Australia

Commonwealth Bank of Australia is working with MasterCard to support NFC payments on Samsung's Galaxy S4 smartphone. MasterCard plans to expand the system to other Samsung phones and other regions after the initial rollout in Australia, which has more than 220,000 terminals that can accept contactless payments.

Isis

Isis, a venture of AT&T, Verizon Wireless and T-Mobile, recently launched an NFC-based mobile wallet throughout the U.S. It now has the support of JPmorgan Chase, American Express and, most recently, Wells Fargo.

Signage stands outside Citigroup Inc. offices in New York, U.S., on Tuesday, Jan. 17, 2012. Citigroup Inc., the U.S. bank led by a former equities-trading chief, said revenue from that business dropped more than 70 percent for the second straight quarter. Photographer: Victor J. Blue/Bloomberg

Victor J. Blue/Bloomberg

Citibank Hong Kong

Citi is working with the wireless carrier 3 Hong Kong on an NFC mobile wallet. The companies are charging a monthly fee a common practice in Hong Kong, and one that might be exported to other regions if the 3 Citi Wallet is a success. (Image: Bloomberg News)

A logo sits on a sign outside a Vodafone store, operated by Vodafone Group Plc in Hamburg, Germany, on Saturday, Nov. 9, 2013. While Germany's economic strength does continue to support the region's recovery, the European Commission last week cut its forecast for euro-zone growth in 2014, anticipating 1.1 percent expansion instead of the 1.2 percent forecast in May. Photographer: Krisztian Bocsi/Bloomberg

Krisztian Bocsi/Bloomberg

Vodafone

Vodafone is launching an NFC wallet called SmartPass in Dusseldorf, Germany, in the first quarter of 2014. Owners of non-NFC smartphones can make contactless payments by adhering an NFC sticker. (Image: Bloomberg News)

The Rabobank Groep logo sits on the bank's headquarters in Utrecht, Netherlands, on Thursday, Oct. 24, 2013. Rabobank, the Netherlands' biggest mortgage lender, will pay about $1 billion to resolve regulators' claims that it tried to manipulate benchmark interest rates, two people with knowledge of the matter said. Photographer: Jasper Juinen/Bloomberg

Jasper Juinen/Bloomberg

Rabobank

Rabobank is set to launch an NFC-based wallet in the Netherlands this year after an earlier test with MasterCard and the wireless carrier KPN. The bank says it is following the trends established by its increasingly mobile customer base. (Image: Bloomberg News)

A pedestrian checks his mobile handset while passing a Telenor ASA mobile phone store in Budapest, Hungary, on Tuesday, April 24, 2012. Hungary plans to introduce a minute-based tax on phone calls in July this year to help it raise about 170 million euros ($225 million), after a previous proposal for a sales tax on telecommunication companies was challenged by the European Commission, Welt newspaper said. Photographer: Akos Stiller/Bloomberg

Akos Stiller/Bloomberg

DnB, Telenor

Norway's DnB is launching a mobile wallet with Telenor, the country's largest mobile carrier. After the initial rollout with DnB, the wallet will come to customers of Sparebank 1 Group, Skandiabanken and Fana Sparebank. (Image: Bloomberg News)

Rogers Communications Inc. Arena stands in front of the city skyline in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, on Tuesday, Sept. 30, 2013. Canada's dollar traded in the narrowest range since April as the U.S. government shutdown reached a third day, raising concern the political gridlock will slow growth in the nation's largest trading partner. Photographer: Ben Nelms/Bloomberg

Ben Nelms/Bloomberg

Rogers

The Canadian telecom's Suretap mobile wallet is growing. Rogers Communications recently announced plans to offer a prepaid MasterCard to its mobile wallet users, and expects to announce gift card partners and a bank partner in the coming weeks. (Image: Bloomberg News)

A logo sits on a balloon advertising 4G internet services inside the Orange SA store in Toulouse, France, on Wednesday, Nov. 20, 2013. France's gross domestic product fell 0.1 percent in the three months through September, national statistics office Insee said in an e-mailed statement. Photographer: Balint Porneczi/Bloomberg

Balint Porneczi/Bloomberg

Orange

Orange, the largest mobile operator in France, is tying a prepaid Visa card to the NFC SIM cards in its smartphones. The Orange Cash system will have a loyalty and coupon program for merchants and consumers, and will also support one-time-use virtual account numbers for making payments online. (Image: Bloomberg News)

An illuminated logo is seen outside a TIM store, the mobile phone unit of Telecom Italia SpA, in Pescara, Italy, on Friday, Sept. 6, 2013. Telecom Italia SpA is considering a reorganization of its domestic units under a plan that would create separate companies for its consumer and business services, according to a person with knowledge of the matter. Photographer: Marc Hill/Bloomberg

Marc Hill/Bloomberg

Telecom Italia

Telecom Italia and Visa Europe are launching an NFC system after a series of successful tests in Milan. The NFC wallet will work with a TIM-branded Visa card issued by Intesa Sanpaolo. (Image: Bloomberg News)

The Toronto-Dominion Bank (TD) logo is displayed on a newly-opened branch near the CN Tower, back left, in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, on Tuesday, Dec. 21, 2010. Toronto-Dominion Bank agreed to buy Chrysler Financial Corp. from Cerberus Capital Management LP for $6.3 billion in cash, adding an auto-finance company in its second-largest acquisition. Photographer: Norm Betts/Bloomberg

Norm Betts/Bloomberg

TD, Loblaw

TD Bank and Loblaw are preparing to launch an NFC wallet in Canada. The wallet, called Ugo, is linked to Loblaw's PC Plus loyalty program, which lets grocery shoppers earn rewards toward their next food bill. (Image: Bloomberg News)

TOT

TOT, Thailand's state-owned telecommunications provider, is planning an NFC-based mobile payment service called JustPay in 2014. The system would allow merchants to analyze customer payment data for promotions and marketing. (Image: ShuterStock)

Tim Hortons Inc. signage is seen on the door of a restaurant in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, on Monday, Sept. 16, 2013. Tim Hortons Inc. Chief Executive Officer Marc Caira said Canadas largest coffee and doughnuts chain must succeed in the U.S. as competition brings slower growth at home. Photographer: Brent Lewin/Bloomberg

Brent Lewin/Bloomberg

Tim Hortons

Host Card Emulation may not be traditional NFC, but it's still NFC. The technology allows NFC phones to make contactless payments without access to the phone's secure element. Tim Hortons began supporting NFC payments shortly after Google introduced HCE in the latest version of its Android smartphone software. (Image: Bloomberg News)

The Google Inc. Mobile Wallet application for cardless payment is displayed on a smartphone screen at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Spain, on Wednesday, Feb. 29, 2012. The Mobile World Congress, operated by the GSMA, expects 60,000 visitors and 1400 companies to attend the four-day technology industry event which runs Feb. 27 through March 1. Photographer: Chris Ratcliffe/Bloomberg

Chris Ratcliffe/Bloomberg

Google Wallet

Depending on the device, Google Wallet could be a P2P app, an online checkout option, a Host Card Emulation-based contactless payment system or even a plastic debit card. But in the beginning, Google Wallet was primarily an NFC-based payment system, and that function has remained even as Google Wallet has shed many other core features. (Image: Bloomberg News)

Weve

Formerly Project Oscar, the Weve venture in the U.K. has undergone many changes but has never wavered from its commitment to using NFC as its foundation. Over time, the project has shifted its focus from payments to marketing, but the new system is still expected to focus on NFC-equipped smartphones. (Image: ShuterStock)