Mobile payments

An NFC-based mobile wallet and the bold creation of Canada’s largest wireless carriers, suretap looked promising at first. But in the end, it couldn't keep up with juggernauts like Apple Pay, Android Pay and Samsung Pay.

If members here are not excited by loan payment options such as online bill pay or dropping a check in the mail, they can pay be text—and 80% of members who sign up for this virtual service actually use it.

Nintendo is known for taking an experimental approach to making video games, and this same mindset carries over to how it handles money. The company's hardware, software and business strategies show a forward-thinking strategy for payment acceptance.

Wearables have made a major breakthrough in the last two years. I believe that in several sectors including payments they are now mainstream technology rather than a minor tributary.

Under the hood, the new Masterpass ties directly to banks' own digital wallets with support for Near Field Communication-based mobile payments via Android devices and the ability to centralize features for supported cards, including balance display and purchase alerts, and support for paying with loyalty points.

USAA now offers voice-guided check deposit on its mobile app for visually impaired customers.

Google will provide McDonald's customers in San Jose, Calif., this weekend with free burgers as a promotion for its Hands Free payment app at any of 47 participating restaurants.

The hit smartphone game Pokemon Go is not a mobile wallet or a loyalty app, but it is arguably far more successful at driving traffic to retailers' stores than many of the apps designed for that purpose.

Starbucks Corp. is taking its highly success mobile payment app into China, a country in which consumers have quickly adopted mobile payment methods.

Android Pay is now a payment option for users of the food-ordering apps Grubhub and Seamless, both of which are products of Grubhub Holdings Inc.

MasterCard has taken a broad view of the "smart cities" concept, working with multiple organizations toward a common goal.

Amazon's Prime Day event is marketed as a summertime version of the Black Friday shopping holiday, but it also serves as a proving ground for the retailer's most experimental ways of selling its products.

Spanish gasoline retailer Repsol this week augmented its Near Field Communication-based mobile payments services by launching an app enabling motorists to pay for fuel without leaving the car.

What's most intriguing to payments industry insiders is what Walmart left on the table when designing Walmart Pay, and what those decisions could mean for retailers and bank card issuers.

Mobile wallets remain in a nascent stage until service providers can deliver value beyond just payments.

Developers of smartwatches deliver numerous capabilities and features on those devices that consumers typically use on a smartphone, including payments. But a consumer in the U.K. no longer needs an expensive smartwatch simply to move money from their timepieces.

Square Inc. spent six weeks in Portland, Ore. — a city with a strong existing base of micro-merchants — to transform it into one of the company's top U.S. markets in total Apple Pay transactions conducted with its card readers.

Walmart Pay is the culmination of years of efforts that Walmart has put into building its brand as a trusted provider of payments. In addition to its new mobile wallet, Walmart has been involved in numerous innovative projects to help its customers move money.

Canada's national debit scheme has been a mobile trendsetter in recent years, enabling the organization to pursue agreements with other national programs that want to replicate that success.

Seven months after revealing its branded mobile payment app, Walmart is making Walmart Pay available in more than 4,600 of its stores throughout the U.S., with early figures indicating consumers approve of its "connected" app model.