Contactless payments

Mobeewave, a provider of in-person contactless payment acceptance software, is getting an investment from Samsung Venture Investment Corporation that pushes a recent Series B funding round led by NewAlpha, Mastercard and Forestay Capital to nearly $20 million.

Credit unions and smaller banks can differentiate themselves by returning to the passion for personal service that first anchored their success, and payments are central to this strategy, according to Deborah Matthews Phillips, managing director of payment strategy at Jack Henry.

The rise of contactless cards could eclipse mobile payments adoption, experts predicted, while evolving fraud threats may give rise to increased account controls for consumers.

Nearly all new payments technologies strive to become as ubiquitous — and as secure — as possible. It's a goal that is harder than ever to achieve.

As the U.S. plays catch-up in contactless card adoption and biometric cards gain momentum, Mastercard senses an opportunity in the convergence.

Part of the issue is that in the U.S., contactless cards didn't pave the way for mobile as they did in other regions. Without widespread acceptance of contactless cards, merchants were put in the position of being asked to upgrade their terminals for mobile without any promise that the investment would pay off.

Starbucks has established itself as a model for mobile payments among coffee drinkers, but Barclays is partnering with a U.K. coffee chain to take it a step further by bringing the coffee cup itself into play.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. has committed to roll out contactless chip cards for all new and replacement payment cards, which will likely spark a mass movement, if the experience of other global markets is any guide.

Intesa Sanpaolo will be testing a new biometric contactless Mastercard in Italy, leveraging technology from Sweden-based Fingerprints AB.

The Bank of England issued a challenge for consumers who usually pay with cash to go cashless for a week, as an educational experience prior to its upcoming conference, Future Forum 2018.

FleetCor’s Brazilian electronic toll unit, operating under the brand name Sem Parar, is partnering with McDonald's to enable its customers to make contactless purchases at the drive-thru window.

In the U.S., most banks and retailers seemed to have given up on contactless cards with the 2011 demise of the much-publicized Chase Blink brand. But the payment format is making a strong comeback in 2018.

The U.K. market has reached a tipping point where consumers are conducting more in-store transactions using a contactless form of payment (card or phone) instead of a process that requires the card to be inserted into a POS terminal.

Wirecard is partnering with Visa in Romania on a white-label digital wallet service enabling any card issuer to offer mobile contactless payment solutions through a wallet featuring card controls and account notifications.

Australians' love for contactless payments is driving the Australia and New Zealand Banking Group to incorporate mobile withdrawal technology to its ATM network.

Contactless payments are a big success story in most countries around the world—including developing markets—but not in the U.S.

Along with activating contactless payments at its store terminals, Costco has opened its checkout lines to Apple Pay, Samsung Pay and Google Pay. But there’s a catch.

The U.S. may be next to see a surge of contactless credit cards, following other major markets around the world. But it’s unclear whether enough U.S. consumers are interested in contactless payments for issuers to make the investment.

Contactless payments have simplified the checkout experience around the world, allowing customers to get on with their lives a bit quicker with a simple tap of a contactless-enabled card, phone or device, writes Dan Sanford, vice president of consumer products at Visa.

Contactless card and mobile payments are set to see significant uptake in Australia, already a world leader in contactless card acceptance, as the country starts to implement open transit payments.