Smartphones are central to our daily lives. We manage our personal and business affairs, watch movies, track our health and, increasingly, make payments. Adoption of mobile payments is rising considerably worldwide, with predictions estimating it’ll be the second most popular way to pay by 2022.

Why banks and retailers should develop their own mobile payments solutions

For banks and other issuers, delivering mobile payments is becoming increasingly imperative. There’s a crucial choice to make, though – support the Giant Pays or go it alone.

While ‘flying solo’ may make it more complex, it offers banks a whole host of benefits, including increased control, brand recognition and security – writes Christian Damour, Product and Services Manager – Security at FIME.

Host Card Emulation (HCE) is one compelling option for banks to develop, launch and maintain their own payment apps for Android customers quickly and cost-effectively. Its caveat, however, is the need for a robust, security-driven implementation plan to ensure a successful app launch from the get-go.

So, what is HCE and how can banks best use it to power their way to the path of mobile payment success?

The A-B-C of HCE

In a nutshell, HCE enables a smartcard to be mimicked on a mobile device using software, meaning transaction data and card credentials are stored in a cloud server, rather than inside the mobile device. This provides greater flexibility and processing power, considerably reducing the cost of deploying mobile payments.

Google first enabled HCE back in 2014. Since then, it’s been selected by several banks (and even Russia’s national payment scheme, MIR) to deliver cloud-based payments without relying on third parties.

Why choose HCE?

Ease and convenience of services is top priority for consumers when choosing a bank, so nailing the UX of any mobile payments solution is key. By utilising HCE, banks and retailers can retain control over this all-important UX, as well as being able to increase brand visibility and foster loyalty. Looking longer term, it also ensures these stakeholders retain ownership of valuable customer data that can be used to inform the development of products and services.

From a technical perspective, launching HCE apps is a considerably more streamlined process. For example, issuers don’t have to contend with hardware security certifications, as software HCE apps undergo simpler, less expensive functional and security certifications. It also removes the challenge of managing multiple complex and costly relationships that, say, a traditional SE-based solution, creates.

Start with security!

Now, back to that caveat mentioned earlier. While Android offers some security features, such as sandboxing, these are notoriously vulnerable. Its rich OS and unsecure software mean that if rooted, all apps and data are accessible. In short, relying on Android’s security features is simply not enough.

The answer? Layers of security.

To launch HCE solutions effectively, security must be a priority from the start to mitigate concerns surrounding Android device security.

36% of US smartphone users don’t use mobile payments because they are worried that their data is not secure, so security can also operate as a marketing tool to differentiate and gain market share. Crucially, however, a lack of security can leave banks vulnerable to a whole host of customer relationship and reputational challenges if apps are compromised, not to mention potential fines. Plus, the later security bugs are found, the more expensive they are to correct.

Partnering up 

Banks and other issuers cannot afford to be among the 43% of Android apps found to be at a high security risk. But they don’t have to go it alone. Working with a strategic partner can help banks adhere to best practice when defining, designing and deploying HCE solutions, ensuring the protection of data, money and consumer loyalty. Seeking support from the very start of projects also mitigates costly and unexpected delays and challenges, streamlining that all-important launch time.

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5G has gained significant traction over the past year and is now live in 24 markets worldwide, supported by an expanding roster of 5G devices and growing awareness among consumers. According to the 2020 global edition of the GSMA’s flagship Mobile Economy report series, 46 operators in 24 markets had launched commercially available 5G networks by 30 January 2020. One in five mobile connections is forecast to be running on 5G networks by 2025[1].

“The mobile operator worldwide investment forecast will be more than a trillion dollars over the coming years, focused on rolling out advanced networks to serve both consumer and enterprise customers,” explains Mats Granryd, Director General of the GSMA. “Over the last 12 months we have seen the 5G ‘hype’ make way for reality: millions of consumers are already migrating to 5G, while enterprises are beginning to embrace 5G-enabled network slicing, edge computing and low-latency services.”

The new report reveals that:

5G has arrived – but 4G is still king: 4G was the world’s dominant mobile technology last year, supporting more than half (52%) of global connections. Despite the emergence of 5G, 4G will continue to grow over the coming years, increasing to account for 56% of connections by 2025.

The industry is investing heavily in 5G: Mobile operators are expected to spend $1.1 trillion worldwide between 2020 and 2025 in mobile CAPEX, roughly 80% of which will be on 5G networks.

The smartphone is becoming ubiquitous: Smartphones are forecast to account for four of every five connections by 2025, up from 65% in 2019.

IoT will be an integral part of the 5G era: Between 2019 and 2025, the number of global IoT connections will more than double to almost 25 billion, while global IoT revenue will more than triple to $1.1 trillion.

Subscriber growth is slowing, but the industry still has people to connect: The number of unique mobile subscribers[2] at the end of last year stood at 5.2 billion (67% of the population) and is forecast to grow to 5.8 billion by 2025 (70%).

Half the planet connected to the mobile internet: Almost half of the global population (3.8 billion people) are now mobile internet users, forecast to reach 61% (5 billion) by 2025.

5G to add $2.2 trillion to the global economy over next 14 Years

According to the report, mobile technologies and services generated 4.7% of GDP globally last year, a contribution that amounted to $4.1 trillion of economic value added[3]. This contribution is forecast to grow to $4.9 trillion (4.9% of GDP) by 2024 as countries around the globe increasingly benefit from the improvements in productivity and efficiency brought about by increased take-up of mobile services. The mobile ecosystem also supported more than 30 million jobs in 2019 (directly and indirectly). It made a substantial contribution to the funding of the public sector, with $490 billion raised through general taxation.

5G is forecast to contribute $2.2 trillion to the global economy by 2034, with key industries such as manufacturing, utilities, and professional and financial services benefiting the most from the new technology.

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Key players in the financial services industry are set on a clear pathway towards collaboration, whether they like it or not, according to a new ‘State of the Industry’ report from Barclays Corporate Banking, An ecosystem in transition.

Exclusive research from the bank highlights the contrasting regional views on where innovation is most likely to come from in the next five years, as well as the vastly different approaches to cybersecurity taken by financial services operators from around the globe.

 FinTechs and traditional players to join up

Barclays conducted a survey of nearly 2,000 industry leaders from across financial services, at events in Europe, Asia and the US. From these senior executives, Barclays Corporate Banking found that more than two-thirds (69%) of businesses globally identify collaborating and partnering with FinTechs for mutual benefit as the preferred approach for traditional banks in the future, contrary to public perceptions which may still be that established financial institutions see FinTech as a threat.

This attitude is particularly strong in Europe (72%), and the US (71%), where the approach from established financial services players is changing towards a clearly stated desire to work together with FinTechs.

 Where will innovation come from?

According to respondents, China is expected to see the biggest rise in payment innovation in the next five years, with 45% of Asian firms ranking it as the most likely source of future innovation, along with 40% of European firms. Even the US, which was the only region to select itself as the most obvious hotspot for future innovation (selected by 34% of firms), ranked China as the second most probable source (chosen by 25%).

While still in the shadow of China, India ranks in the top three as a future source of payment innovation across all three regions, with 21% voting for it in Asia, 12% in Europe and a further 10% in the US.

Muted confidence on cybersecurity

Global attitudes towards cybersecurity also emerged as an area of focus at Money 20/20. Over half (53%) of all professionals surveyed identified that their companies did not have a robust approach to cybersecurity – yet only 23% of respondents felt that investing further in this area should be a priority. More than a quarter (27%) of respondents also felt that their firms could be doing more to educate colleagues on cybersecurity.

Financial services firms in Asia were the least confident when it came to approaching the issue, with only 37% expressing confidence in their own cybersecurity defences (compared to 54% in Europe and 47% in the US). However, they were also leading global efforts to enhance cybersecurity protections – with over a third (35%) of respondents in Asia seeking to increase education on cybersecurity, and one in four (26%) looking to enhance their investment in this area.

“Our research results reveal the wide range of global trends currently developing within financial services, centred on the idea of transition,” says Phil Bowkley, Global Head of Financial Institutions Group, Barclays Corporate Banking.

“As traditional banks look set to collaborate with FinTechs for mutual benefit, and innovation continues to be driven from locations dispersed all over the world, what is clear is that in this fast moving environment successful business models will need to adapt rapidly and reflect regional sentiment and opportunities.”

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Amid rising hype about mobile wallets, P2P FinTech challengers and QR-code payments, this year’s Digital and Card Payments Yearbooks show a card segment in robust health, with business growing strongly. James Wood, Managing Editor, Payments Cards and Mobile interviews Horst Forster, Research Director at Payments Cards and Mobile.

Digital and Card Payments Yearbooks Interview: European Payments in 2021

Horst Forster is a European payments expert with decades of experience in payments consulting and financial technology research. He runs PCM’s Digital and Card Payments Yearbooks, as well as working on bespoke consulting projects for clients. We spoke to him to get his interpretation of this year’s statistics:

PCM: We’ve heard a lot about the arrival of mobile wallets in the last year, especially from merchants and the major Asian players. But it looks like the card business continues to dominate in Europe?

HF: That’s broadly correct. What’s changed is the switch from consumers using an EMV card + PIN at POS to the use of contactless cards and, of course, a rapid rise in e-commerce and m-commerce as a result of the pandemic. At the same time, it’s been good to see the continued roll-out of Strong Customer Authentication (SCA) for e-commerce, which is going to help allay security concerns and reduce consumer friction in lots of cases.

PCM: So do you think we’ll see wallets as the future of payments, or will they simply become part of a broader mix of payment types?

HF: Connected consumers are going to continue to embrace mobile as a convenient way to pay – linked to a card. However, that will happen in concert with other developments. We’ll see contactless cards continue to be popular, as well as click-to-pay functions online. Established players like PayPal, Apple Pay and Google Pay will continue to grow, and the Asian giants of course. The more interesting story is mobile IBAN-based digital payments direct from the bank account, which could provide future competition for cards. I predict we’ll also see domestic schemes continue to matter, especially since many of these have introduced instant payments and mobile wallets as part of their product mix.

“Mobile IBAN-based transfer payments direct from account could provide real competition for cards … and domestic schemes will continue to matter.”

PCM: Branch numbers and indeed the number of banks across Europe are in decline. Are we moving to a purely digital banking system with “robo-branches”, or will branch networks still have a role?

HF: The move towards digital card payments and mobile banking is going to exacerbate consolidation in the banking sector, which has been a long-term industry trend in any case. In the future, I think we’ll see more shared ATM networks, and cash advances delivered through POS devices at retail locations – as well as what you call “robo-branches”, or unattended remote machines capable of many branch functions. We’ll continue to see branch numbers decline – it’s all part of the move towards digital banking hubs and the future, which is “open banking” – the capacity for non-bank FinTech players to take over digital account-to-account banking services from traditional legacy banks.

PCM: What do you think the payments industry’s priorities should be in the next 12-18 months?

HF:  I think industry needs to continue with the roll-out of SCA for online card payments, including the introduction of 3DS Secure v2, and EMVCo’s Secure Remote Commerce technology. At the same time, we need to adopt fresh approaches to tackling novel fraud methods such as mobile account takeover and synthetic user ID, since these are behind some of the recent increase in fraud. Finally, we should also be thinking about the introduction of smart “automatic chargeback” apps, which can help to reduce fraud and boost consumer confidence in the system, as this is going to continue to be a key factor.

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In July of 2017, the Smart Payment Association (SPA) published Wearable Tech: A Growing Payment Opportunity. With sales of wearables booming, the paper explored the huge potential of a world in which open- and closed-loop payment technology could be integrated into a wide range of smart devices.

From initiatives like bPay Loop and Android Wear 2.0 through to the complexity involved in integrating open loop payments into wearables, the first edition of the Wearable Tech paper sought to provide an overview of the major factors influencing consumer adoption and issuer support.

Four years on, and in the wake of dramatic changes to both consumer technology and the world in general, SPA has revisit some of those issues with a fresh perspective.

SPA wanted to understand how the market had grown, which new innovations had been driving it forwards and, crucially, whether some of the obstacles that had been reported on in 2017 had been overcome.

To aid with that, SPA sought the views of SPA members with their fingers firmly on the pulse of wearable payments. Contributions from companies including Thales, G+D and IDEMIA offered invaluable insight into the new technologies, trends and challenges that define the wearable payments market of 2021.

As wearable technology grows smarter and more versatile, and as consumer acceptance of new ways to pay continues to rise, the opportunities for issuers will only become more significant.

In the last in-depth look at wearable payments, it covered a market on the edge of momentous change.

While closed loop payments – utilised primarily in leisure and entertainment venues like theme parks, music festivals, and sports matches – dominated the wearables landscape at that point, growing everyday use pointed to a more expansive and mainstream future.

Today, there is no doubt that this potential is beginning to be realised. In 2019 alone, the global wearable payments market was valued at $285.47 billion by one source[i], with a CAGR projection of 21.7% expected to drive that to some $1.37 trillion by 2027.

Naturally, a dramatic increase in device sales is behind that projected rise: ABI Research believes that more than 86 million payment enabled wearable devices will have been sold by the end of 2020[ii].

This builds on the explosive growth seen earlier in the decade, with the number of (payment or non-payment enabled) wearables sold rising from 94 million in 2017 to around 121 million just one year later[iii].

CCS, the analyst house behind that insight, believes that this figure will grow significantly again by 2023, projecting sales of around 260 million wearable devices at that time.

All of this would mean little without a corresponding increase in consumer spending using wearables. Here too, though, market watchers believe that momentum is growing.

A study by Visa suggests that wearable payment volumes will have reached $501.1 billion by the end of 2020, accounting for 20% of all proximity payments[iv].

A separate survey suggests that wearable payments increased by 365% between 2017 and 2020, with a quarter of Europeans planning to buy goods and services using the technology in the future[v].

Perhaps most importantly, consumers are beginning to see real value from wearable payments. Between 2018 and 2019, Belgian bank KBC conducted a trial in which 1,000 customers were issued with a wearable payment device of their choice from a selection of four – with smart rings, watches, key fobs, and bracelets on offer.

Six in 10 carried that item on them at almost all times, two-thirds noted that they would consider buying a wearable after their trial experience, and more than half would firmly recommend them to family and friends.

Crucially, while debit cards remained the payment method of choice for the trial participants, wearables followed just behind. Cash, perhaps surprisingly, was relegated to third place.

This paper provides an updated view on the fast-moving wearable payments market, and the actions that issuers need to take today in order to be ready for tomorrow.

[i] Wearable Payments Market Outlook – 2027 – Allied Market Research, July 2020

[ii] ABI Research – Q3 2020

[iii] Optimistic Outlook for Wearables – CCS Insight, 20 March 2019

[iv] Paying with wearables: The next big thing in IoT – Visa Innovation Blog

[v] Wearable payments are taking over Europe – Printec, 16 January 2020

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Digital payments have sky-rocketed in popularity as consumers have sought new, more hygienic ways to pay. SoftPOS payments offer numerous benefits to consumers and merchants alike.

Top tips for securing SoftPOS payments

Comprised of software solutions that run on Android Commercial Off-The-Shelf (COTS) devices, they can enable digital payment acceptance in a cost-effective and simple way.

However, SoftPOS solutions must live up to the seamless, consistent and trusted experience provided by traditional payment terminals – writes Christian Damour, Pre-sales Manager – Security at Fime.

Security and confidence are part of this and fundamental to the ongoing adoption and success of the technology. This blog explores the security considerations for SoftPOS solutions.

Important: app security & back-end system must work together

Some SoftPOS solutions rely on hardware-backed features such as Trusted Execution Environment (TEE) technologies to add additional security. However, most need to be hardware-agnostic to support as many devices as possible.

In this case, devices could be rooted and infected with malware. So, it is extremely important to implement as many security features as possible within the mobile app itself to protect consumers and merchants. In addition, a back-end system seamlessly working with the application is required to bring additional security.

Another reason that security is so fundamental is that consumers need to feel safe and comfortable with tapping their card and in some cases entering their PIN on a stranger’s smartphone.

While digital payments have recently seen a rise, in part due to the pandemic, not all consumers are on board yet.

Having the relevant security certifications offers assurance that the technology is fit for purpose, valuable payment data is protected and paying will not expose consumers to fraud.

Technologies to rely on

One important security element that developers must ensure is in place on SoftPOS solutions is attestation and monitoring. This feature is there to thoroughly check the security and integrity of the solution and constantly monitor that it has not been corrupted.

The mobile application sends information about the status and integrity of the application to the attestation and monitoring back-end. The back-end then checks the information, confirms that the integrity of the application has not been corrupted and, if needed, mitigates any detected threat which has not yet been resolved by the mobile app.

Other software-based security mechanisms, which can protect SoftPOS solutions and often need to be implemented on a mobile app, include:

• Anti-Tampering
• Anti-Rooting
• Anti-Instrumentation
• Anti-Emulation
• Anti-Debugging
• Device-Binding
• Obfuscation
• White-box Cryptography

Developers do not need to start from scratch to implement these measures. Most of these security features are available from software protection technology providers. In particular, it is advised that solution providers source their White-box Cryptography solution from a commercial vendor.

This is because such a solution is tricky to develop in an efficient way to pass security evaluation. The good news is that a number of vendors already offer solutions which have passed the required security evaluation and are ready to be used.

Two paths to certification success

Any SoftPOS security evaluation comprises of three steps: documentation and design review, source code review, and penetration testing. But not all solutions can take the exact same approach. When evaluating the security of your SoftPOS solution, the path you take currently depends on whether the solution supports PIN entry.

• Solutions with PIN entry must undergo the payment schemes’ pilot security programmes. These solutions must meet multiple detailed and stringent requirements to achieve certification. It can be challenging to evaluate these types of solutions, since PIN entry has to be entered on the touch screen of a device, which can be complex to secure. The payment schemes’ pilot security programmes focus on the strength of security. This means that the evaluation looks to find vulnerabilities and performs penetration testing to assess the robustness of solutions against attackers. Throughout this process, the main component which is evaluated is the mobile payment acceptance application. The back-end is not assessed, but what is being checked is the communication between the back-end and the front-end.

• Solutions without PIN entry must be compliant with the PCI Contactless Payments on COTS (CPoC) specification in line with payment scheme requirements. This comprises of a more formal compliance process, which requires an exhaustive set of documents to be provided as evidence by solution providers and evaluated by a security lab. Along with more documentation, the scope of the testing is more expansive. It evaluates the full solution, including both the back-end and front-end systems.

Taking the next step

It is expected that next year PCI SSC will issue a new standard called mPoC for mobile Payments on COTS, which will evaluate SoftPOS solutions with PIN entry. This new standard will also enable SoftPOS solution components (for example, Software Development Kits (SDK), PIN entry solutions and back-end systems) to be certified separately first and then in combination.

This will provide a much more standardised approach to SoftPOS security evaluation and ensure that the full scope of these solutions is tested, rather than just the front-end.

Since solutions supporting PIN entry are most commonplace nowadays, those wanting to bring SoftPOS solutions to market know that they must undergo the payment schemes’ pilot security programmes now, and then perform the new mPoC process in the future.

While this is frustrating, with the growing momentum in SoftPOS solutions, they cannot afford to wait for this standard to come in before launching their solutions. Switching to this new process will no doubt bring a new set of complexities.

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Payments Cards & Mobile spoke to Grzegorz Nowakowski (GN), Co-founder and Vice President at SoftPos, to find out more about the use of digital devices as point-of-sale (POS) acceptance terminals – and why we’re going to see such devices proliferate rapidly in the next few years.

PCM: The use of digital devices like mobile phones and tablets as POS devices will be a new development for some our readers. What factors led to this development?

GN: Using digital devices as a payment terminal has come about thanks to three converging trends, the first of which is the incredible growth in the sophistication and computing power of mobile phones and tablets.

Alongside this, COVID-19 has accelerated a trend towards greater use of electronic payments versus cash – Worldline reported cash use dropped 32% last year, for example.

Finally, and as a result of that last trend towards electronic payment, many new merchants categories are looking to accept electronic payment for the first time – and they want to do so with fast set-up, low maintenance costs, flexible functionality and light, mobile hardware.

SoftPos is perfect for merchants who are new to electronic payment as it can be downloaded just like any other app. What’s more, updates – both for functionality and security purposes – can be readily undertaken over the air.

Set up is fast, and initial and ongoing costs are kept low because there’s no need to invest in a dedicated terminal which needs upgrading or replacing.

Also, a growing number of companies are looking to combine payments with other functions such as delivery confirmation, shipping/logistics, and inventory management.

Again, SoftPos is an ideal solution for such companies as these functions can be combined on a single device.

PCM: How did you come to create SoftPos? What’s been happening with the company?

GN: SoftPos was founded in early 2019 and has made enormous progress since. We were formed from a consulting company with 25 years’ experience of advising various payment schemes on their activities. Once we identified the opportunity for a low-cost, easy-to-use payments solution via mobile device, we decided to develop the product ourselves.

The first merchants began to use our solution in Poland around July 2020 as part of an implementation with Worldline.

In the months following this first implementation there was more interest from merchants which resulted in further implementations in other countries.

We are now present in 9 EU countries and expect to be able to announce launch of SoftPos in new markets around the world over the next few months.

PCM: How does your product function, and what are the advantages of the SoftPos solution compared to traditional terminals?

GN: SoftPos is a mobile payment terminal in the form of an Android app which works exactly like a traditional terminal.

The app allows merchants to accept contactless payments with cards or their virtual equivalents, either virtual cards or digital wallets such as Google Pay, Apple Pay, Garmin Pay and others.

Our app can serve as a standalone app or white-label solution and may be installed on both commercial devices and specialist hardware designed for couriers, restaurants, ticket sellers, street vendors, etc.

Those companies already using the latest version of our app have noticed that the security of being able to use a PIN during the transaction process, alongside the convenience of contactless, improves conversion rates as customers appreciate the additional security features.

Companies using our app have also told us their customers are looking for new, safe payments acceptance solutions that respond to their needs for fast, easy and secure ways to pay.

PCM: What does a company require in order to use the SoftPos app?

GN: The only requirements are an Android 8.0 or higher Operating System, internet access and an NFC chip.

SoftPos holds security certificates from various payment organizations, including Mastercard and VISA. Those certificates guarantee the highest level of security during each transaction processed using our app.

PCM: Finally, what are the next steps? Where does SoftPos go from here in terms of its plans for the future, and what do you see happening in the market?

GN: In terms of what happens next in the market, we’ll see the widespread implementation of SoftPos solutions around the world – both in smaller merchants such as street vendors, ticketing and restaurants, and in big logistics, shipping and delivery companies that want to combine payments with other functions.

For us as a company, we have established plans to enter new markets and will be making further announcements about this in the months ahead. We’re also expanding the functionality of the SoftPos app, and our recent announcement that PINs can now be used for contactless transactions over the app is one example of the expanded functionality you’re going to see in the future.

Lastly, we are considering an Initial Public Offering on the Warsaw Stock Exchange. Overall, we see an exciting period of expansion ahead – not just for our company, but for the market as a whole.

You can learn more about SoftPos at www.softpos.eu

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The European Commission has accused Apple of abusing its market position for contactless payments via its digital wallet app Apple Pay.

EU charge Apple Pay with abuse of market power

The EU regulator charged Apple with breaking competition law by abusing its dominant position to limit rivals’ access to contactless technology, as Brussels stepped up its challenge to one of the world’s largest tech groups.

Antitrust investigators are concerned that Apple is preventing competitors from accessing the NFC chip to benefit its own Apple Pay system, the European Commission said in its statement.

Margrethe Vestager, the commission’s executive vice-president in charge of competition policy, said Brussels had “indications that Apple restricted third-party access to key technology necessary to develop rival mobile wallet solutions on Apple’s devices”.

She told reporters: “On a preliminary basis, we have found that Apple abused its dominant position. Apple restricted access to key inputs that are necessary to develop and run mobile payment apps.”If confirmed, “such a conduct would be illegal under our competition rules”, Vestager added.

The company could face fines worth up to 10% of global turnover if the charges are upheld. Apple Pay is used on hundreds of millions of iPhones and the EU charge is the latest in several antitrust investigations opened against the tech giant in Brussels.

Apple is also facing scrutiny over the way it may be disadvantaging rivals on the App Store by taking 30% of some subscription fees while denying some services the option of telling users there are other ways of upgrading.

The case was opened after music streaming service Spotify complained to the commission more than two years ago.

The fresh charges come after Brussels approved two landmark pieces of legislation, including the Digital Markets Act, aimed at curbing the power of big tech groups. The legal curbs have made the EU the centre of a global regulatory crackdown on tech companies.

In its preliminary findings in the latest case, Brussels said it considered that Apple “enjoys significant market power in the market for smart mobile devices and a dominant position on mobile wallet markets”.

The findings of the investigation added: “Apple Pay is the only mobile wallet solution that may access the necessary NFC input on iOS. Apple does not make it available to third-party app developers of mobile wallets. The NFC ‘tap and go’ technology is embedded on Apple mobile devices for payments in stores.”

Apple said: “We designed Apple Pay to provide an easy and secure way for users to digitally present their existing payment cards and for banks and other financial institutions to offer contactless payments for their customers. Apple Pay is only one of many options available to European consumers for making payments, and has ensured equal access to NFC while setting industry-leading standards for privacy and security.”

More than 2,500 banks in Europe use Apple Pay and Apple smartphones represent around a third of the market across Europe.

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The latest white paper from Tietoevry Banking reveals a new generation of merchants is signing up for electronic payments after the COVID-19 pandemic.

The addition of these merchants, typically smaller and medium-sized enterprises, could see the number of companies accepting electronic payments soar by 30% in less than a decade[1].

To meet their needs, acquiring banks and payment service providers (PSPs) need to find a low-cost, flexible and secure acceptance solution that’s easy to implement.

Tap into the power of mobile devices

The huge rise in merchants turning to electronic payments has been driven by a long-term decline in cash use, accelerated by the pandemic.

At the same time, more consumers have turned to electronic payments given hygiene concerns and the speed and convenience of paying with cards or digital wallets.

In their new white paper, Tap to Mobile: next-generation cashless payments for new merchants, Tietoevry Banking argue most first-time adopters of electronic payments will seek to turn their mobile devices into payment terminals via apps that are fast and simple to install.

Known as “Tap to Mobile”, this method of acceptance is predicted[2] to reach a total market value of $76.3 billion by the end of 2025, representing growth of over 23% each year.

Previously, many smaller merchants were put off accepting electronic payments by the cost and complexity of purchasing or renting a POS terminal, as well as long set-up and authentication processes.

As Tap to Mobile only requires a standard smartphone, such systems are cheaper and easier to set up compared to previous-generation POS devices.

The ease of onboarding merchants using Tap to Mobile means they do not experience loss of revenue while waiting days or weeks for authentication and set-up to complete.

Because Tap to Mobile systems can be set up “over the air” (that, is remotely via wireless internet communication) and without reference to a Terminal Service Provider, they can be updated and adapted to accept new payments methods such as Buy-Now-Pay-Later (BNPL), account-to-account (A2A) solutions and crypto payments, all of which are destined to play a much bigger role in Europe’s payments landscape in the years ahead.

For more than two years, Tietoevry has been developing and piloting a Tap to Mobile solution in partnership with leading technology companies.

This solution is white-label, meaning it can be branded with an acquirer or PSP’s logo and adapted to suit their requirements.

This solution will be of great interest to acquirers and PSPs looking to target both the existing and emerging new merchant populations, especially SME merchants, small chains and merchants looking to combine their online and physical acquiring into one solution.

As one of Europe’s leading transaction processors with fully-secure 24/7/365 availability, we are connected to a wide range of acquirers.

Our systems have processed 2 billion transactions each year over the last 15 years, with consistent 100% availability in our core.

This level of expertise enables us to offer banks and PSPs the ability to acquire transactions using our Tap to Mobile solution and process those transactions using our secure, always-on technologies.

Download the new white paper to find out more about why and how “Tap to Mobile” solutions will deliver a step change in payments acceptance.

[1] See The Digital and Card Payment Yearbooks 2021-2022 (European Overview)

[2] Payments Cards and Mobile, 26 January 2022, The digital revolution moves from payment to acceptance

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Google has announced it is deploying its new and improved Google Wallet in 39 separate markets. Now, the new digital wallet is making its way to Android and Wear OS devices with the new update replacing the existing Google Pay app where applicable.

            Google Wallet launches in 39 countries

Times have changed over the years, with a digital wallet being more than just about keeping credit cards on your smartphone.

Google Wallet has evolved and is now tasked with holding other valuable information such as IDs, loyalty cards, boarding passes, transit cards, hotel keys, and more.

It can offer support for any number of items thanks to Android developers. Since the pandemic, it has even been updated to support vaccine cards.

Google Wallet is backed by Android security features like facial recognition or locking it behind a password.

Users will also be able to control the data and how it can be accessed. Data that is stored or transmitted using Google Wallet will be protect with encryption.

If you choose to connect it to other applications, you can receive data relevant to activities or events that you might be attending.

For example, this can include time or reservation changes for flights or whether your transit card has sufficient funds for a trip.

New and improved Google Wallet

While this update will be currently rolling out to 39 countries, those in the United States, Singapore, and India won’t be able to solely rely just on the Google Wallet app.

The completely reimagined digital wallet for Android and Wear OS standardizes the way you save and quickly access essential items such as payment and vaccine cards, transit and event tickets, boarding and loyalty passes.

The Wallet also features smart and smooth integrations with other Google apps and services. For example, when you add a transit card from a supported agency to Wallet, your card and balance will automatically show up in Google Maps when you search for directions.

If your balance is running low, you can quickly tap and add fare before you arrive at the station.

The new Google Wallet allows you to move seamlessly through the world without having to worry about security or privacy.

It provides you with granular settings and the Android security features you’re already used to such as authentication, biometrics and encryption so that you can create a privacy experience that works for you.

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