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September 13, 2021
On the web
Ex-Ripple Executives Plan PingNpay, a Blockchain Micropayment Network
Crowdfund Insider
“London-based pingNpay, a new blockchain-based payments platform, has moved out of stealth mode by announcing its plan to launch a global micropayment network at some point in 2022. pingNPay seeks to create a new category of high frequency, low-value payments, like less than $20, as part of a web 3.0 initiative. pingNPay is expected to start in the UK with a digital currency backed by the pound. pingNPay plans to create stablecoins, backed entirely by fiat, for each country where it will provide services. The company says it will publish proof of reserves to meet any regulatory requirements.”
September 8, 2021
On the web
Amazon’s Cashierless ‘Just Walk Out’ Tech Is Coming to Whole Foods Stores
TechCrunch
“After launching it in Go stores and then bringing it to larger Fresh supermarkets, Amazon’s cashierless “Just Walk Out” tech will soon arrive in two Whole Foods locations. The service, which lets you pick up goods from shelves and (yep) just walk out, is coming to new stores in Washington DC and Sherman Oaks, California next year, the company announced .”
September 3, 2021
On the web
Bank Leumi Signs Deal With Google to Roll Out Digital Wallet in Israel
timesofisrael
“Israel’s Bank Leumi announced Thursday that it signed an agreement with Google to roll out Google Pay, the tech giant’s digital payments app for Android users, in Israel. According to the deal, Leumi bank customers will be able to use Google Pay, as well as Leumi’s existing digital wallet, Pepper, to make purchases in stores and online.”
Toronto Blue Jays Stadium Introduces Reverse ATMs for Fans
www.kioskmarketplace.com
“Azimut, a self-service solutions provider specializing in kiosks for banks and telecoms, recently debuted its Reverse ATM, a self service kiosk that helps customers convert cash into an active EMV card that they can start using right away, according to a press release.”
On the wires
Scarlet™, a New Bank Account and Debit Mastercard®, Launches Exclusively at Walgreens, Promotes a Path to Financial Health, Earns Rewards on Purchases at Walgreens and Beyond
“Walgreens and InComm Payments ™, a leading global payments technology company, today announced the launch of Scarlet 1, a bank account and debit card powered by Mastercard and issued by MetaBank®, available exclusively at Walgreens. Scarlet helps make the path to financial wellness simpler than ever with Walgreens Cash rewards, as well as personal finance planning tools and payment solutions. Scarlet will be available at more than 9,000 Walgreens stores nationwide, online and via the Walgreens mobile app.”
September 2, 2021
On the wires
Euronet Worldwide’s Epay Division Announces Cooperation With PayPal to Bring QR Code Payment to In-store Retailers
“epay, the digital payments business segment of global financial technology solutions and payments provider Euronet Worldwide, Inc. (NASDAQ:EEFT), today announced the integration of the PayPal QR Code in their point-of-sale solution. The solution is already live in Germany and will be available in other markets in the future.”
August 27, 2021
On the web
California Fintech MovoCash Expands Fund Transfer Options With Assistance From Fiserv
Crowdfund Insider
“MovoCash, a California-headquartered Fintech firm, is improving their clients’ on-demand banking experience with new money movement options supported by Fiserv, Inc. ( NASDAQ: FISV ), an international provider of payments and financial services tech. MOVO is enhancing payments by enabling clients to deposit, pay, receive, save, send and spend their funds within seconds. Additionally, customers can mint and convert virtual currency to USD, all from their smartphones.”
UnionPay App Recognizes WeChat QR Code in Latest Interoperability Push · TechNode
TechNode
“UnionPay app users are now able to scan WeChat QR codes to make payments. WeChat does not currently make payments to UnionPay QR codes, instead suggesting the user download another app in a TechNode test Wednesday. Different payments providers have previously required customers to scan different codes. This integration is the latest step toward interoperability for Chinese mobile payments, which fintech regulators have encouraged in recent years.”
On the wires
Contactless Limit to Increase to £100 From 15 October | UK Finance
“The national roll-out of the new £100 spending limit for contactless card payments will begin from 15 October 2021, UK Finance announces today. The decision to raise the contactless limit from £45 to £100 was made by HM Treasury and the Financial Conduct Authority following a public consultation and in discussion with both the retail and banking sectors. It follows on from the successful increase in the limit from £30 to £45 in April 2020.”
August 24, 2021
On the web
The Numbers Hiding Behind That QR Code
Wall Street Journal
“I have cautiously resumed dining in restaurants occasionally, and so have found myself scanning QR codes to access the menu online. It’s a quick and easy process hiding a surprisingly large amount of math. QR stands for Quick Response, and these codes were invented in 1994 by Masahiro Hara at the Japanese automotive company Denso Wave. Their original purpose was to track inventory in factories, but broader uses became possible with the advent and ubiquity of smartphones. QR codes are essentially a two-dimensional version of bar codes, which are a clever way of encoding information in an image using vertical lines of different thicknesses that a scanner can detect.”
August 23, 2021
On the wires
Blackhawk Network Introduces Scan-to-Buy Live Entertainment And Amusement Ticket Purchasing In US Retailers
“As live entertainment and amusement parks begin to make a comeback, Blackhawk Network has launched a contactless ticket purchasing solution for entertainment brands and retailers. This innovation makes it even easier for consumers to purchase tickets to their favorite theme parks, concerts and live events in the retail locations where they regularly shop. Blackhawk is leveraging its proprietary ScanIt solution to enable QR ticket purchasing in retail. This QR code technology enables merchants to engage with customers at multiple touchpoints within the physical retail environment.”
August 16, 2021
On the wires
UnionPay International Launches First Contactless E-wallet in Tajikistan
“UnionPay International (UPI) announced today that it has partnered with the International Bank of Tajikistan to launch the country’s first contactless e-wallet, making UnionPay the first payment brand to offer mobile contactless payment services in the country. As a result, the number of e-wallets outside the Chinese mainland that support UnionPay cards reaches 100. Meanwhile, the number of merchants accepting UnionPay mobile payments has exceeded 10 million. The two milestones mark the forming of an interconnected UnionPay cross-border mobile payment ecosystem.”
August 11, 2021
On the wires
ASC X9 Publishes a Blockchain Risk Assessment Framework
“The document is like a “quick-start” guide for what needs to be considered when assessing existing systems or planning a new blockchain system. It offers digestible, useful and practical information for identifying how blockchain systems differ from the traditional, widely understood tools, and it poses questions to help expose areas of risk that might have gone unnoticed without a clear understanding of these differences. The new report is available for download at no charge.”
August 10, 2021
On the wires
BBVA to Offer Payment and Financing Services on Trusple – Ant Group’s Blockchain Platform for Global Trade
“BBVA and Ant Group (Alibaba affiliate) have signed an agreement to collaborate on the integration of financial services in their platform, Trusple. Based on blockchain technology, this network is aimed to accelerate the digital transformation and facilitate the financing of international trade operations, with a special focus on small and mid-sized businesses.”
August 4, 2021
On the wires
Volante Technologies Launches The Volante Experience™, Rapid Onboarding for Cloud Payments As a Service
Volante Technologies, the global leader in cloud payments and financial messaging, announced today the launch of The Volante Experience™, its latest Payments as a Service (PaaS) customer experience offering. Volante Experience will bring the speed, lower cost and simplicity of the modern SaaS customer onboarding experience to banks and financial institutions adopting Volante’s cloud-native payments solutions.
July 30, 2021
On the web
How Walgreens and Walmart’s New Banking Ventures Will Shake up Finance
Fast Company
“Retail banking has changed dramatically over the past several years, with the rise of digital banking and tech-forward neobanks like Dave and Chime, which pushed incumbent financial institutions to develop their own mobile-first offerings. Now this competitive market is being disrupted again by two of the country’s biggest retailers, Walmart and Walgreens. Both companies recently announced new banking initiatives designed to capture the mid-market consumer and monetize their most valuable asset: the loyal relationships they have with customers.”
Australian Public Hearing Considers Case for Regulatory Controls to Ensure Payment Apps Get Access to Smartphone NFC Technology
NFCW
“An Australian parliamentary committee has held a public hearing at which it heard evidence from representatives of leading Australian banks, payment services providers and other financial bodies on regulatory issues including whether companies such as Apple should be mandated to allow third-party payment apps access to a smartphone’s NFC chip.”
July 29, 2021
On the web
The Point of Sale Isn’t Just Changing — It Could Disappear
American Banker
“One of the most significant new trends is consumers’ strong interest in checkout-free retail, in which payments are handled almost invisibly, according to new research from Arizent, the parent company of American Banker. This stands in contrast to the backlash against checkout-free retail prior to the pandemic, when the concept was seen as discriminatory against the unbanked since it downplayed or eliminated the use of cash.”
July 26, 2021
On the web
QR Codes Are Here to Stay. So Is the Tracking They Allow.
The New York Times
“QR codes — essentially a kind of bar code that allows transactions to be touchless — have emerged as a permanent tech fixture from the coronavirus pandemic. Restaurants have adopted them en masse, retailers including CVS and Foot Locker have added them to checkout registers, and marketers have splashed them all over retail packaging, direct mail, billboards and TV advertisements.”
July 23, 2021
On the web
Polish Mobile Payments Service Lets Users Make NFC Payments Direct From Bank Account
NFCW
“Consumers in Poland will soon be able to use their Android NFC device to make tokenized contactless payments at the point of sale (POS) directly from their bank account via their mobile banking app without needing a debit or credit card. Polish mobile payments service provider Blik is making the contactless functionality available in the apps of six of the 17 banks that support its mobile payments solution.”
July 21, 2021
On the wires
Afinis Interoperability Standards Releases New APIs to Help Businesses With Cash Management Decisions | Nacha
“Nacha’s Afinis Interoperability Standards announced today it has released three new APIs to assist corporate customers of financial institutions with accessing and reviewing their own financial transaction data to better help them with cash management analysis and informed decision-making. Afinis is a membership-based organization that focuses on the rapid delivery of APIs and other financial services standards across the U.S. and globally.”
July 16, 2021
On the web
Walmart Is Testing an All-self-checkout Supercenter in Plano
Dallas News
“Walmart is testing an all-self-checkout Supercenter in Plano at one of its biggest local stores and one where growing families can easily pile high a grocery cart. It’s calling the process “hosted checkout” because employees are standing by to help if customers need it. Kroger has been testing all self-checkout at a small urban store on Cedar Springs in Dallas, but the sight of no cashier lanes in a store as big as Walmart’s Plano Supercenter stocked with more than 120,000 items and surrounded by suburban rooftops is daunting.”
July 14, 2021
On the web
Blockchain Audit Firm CertiK Raises $37 Million in Series B Funding
The Block
“The funding comes as the demand for blockchain and smart contracts audits is increasing in the wake of hacks and attacks in the decentralized finance (DeFi) space. According to The Block Research, nearly $500 million has been stolen and lost in DeFi attacks and scams in the last year and a half. CertiK audits codes of blockchain projects and protocols to ensure they are secure. The New York-based firm, founded in 2018, claims to have over 1,000 clients, including Aave, Polygon, Yearn, and Binance.”
July 13, 2021
On the wires
7-Eleven Expands Mobile Checkout Feature to Thousands of US Stores
“Check this out. No, really. 7-Eleven, Inc. has expanded its new Mobile Checkout contactless shopping solution to an additional 2,500+ stores across the U.S. Using the 7-Eleven app, customers can quickly scan items and pay for purchases without ever standing in a checkout line. Mobile Checkout is now available in more than 3,000 participating 7-Eleven stores in 32 states including Washington, D.C.”
Sam’s Club Evolves Its Scan & Go App, Merging Digital and Physical Experiences
“Sam’s Club is piloting new Scan & Go™ technology that explores an additional way to seamlessly get merchandise from a club location to a member’s front door. This pilot program, called Scan & Ship™, is integrated into the retailer’s popular Scan & Go feature within the Sam’s Club app and will allow members to place direct-to-home orders in the aisle by scanning merchandise included in the program.”
July 7, 2021
On the web
Dutch Regulator Calls for Extra EU Rules to Ensure Payment App Access to Smartphone NFC Technology
NFCW
“The Netherlands Authority for Consumers and Markets (ACM) is calling for amendments to current European Union legislation in order to ensure companies such as Apple provide payment apps with access to a smartphone’s NFC chip to give users a choice of in-store payment methods on their device. The call comes as ACM completes its investigation into whether restricting access to a device’s NFC chip constitutes a breach of competition rules .”
On the wires
LawPay Expands Legal Contactless Payments for Attorneys With QR Codes
“LawPay, the leading online payment solution for legal professionals, expanded its features to release QR codes for immediate use by attorneys to accept and receive payments. These new custom payment QR codes are available for use by all LawPay customers as an easy way for their clients to pay digitally by simply scanning the QR code on an invoice to save time and increase cash flow for the firms.”
July 2, 2021
On the web
Checkout-free Store’s Daily Customers Jump 250%
Chain Store Age
“A new autonomous convenience store in the Vantage Pointe luxury high-rise community in San Diego is off to a roaring start. Artificial intelligence (AI) and computer vision technology provider Accel Robotics opened Valet Market, a 1,500-sq.-ft. autonomous store within Brookfield’s Vantage Pointe in San Diego’s East Village, on Friday, June 11, 2021. In the first few weeks since opening to the public, the store is growing by 250% average daily customers.”
June 29, 2021
On the web
This QR Code Startup Just Raised $5 Million Co-led by Coatue and Seven Seven Six
TechCrunch
“Amazon revolutionized one-click shopping, and it has a nearly $2 trillion market cap to show for the effort. Now, a 10-person startup founded by JD Maresco, who previously cofounded the public safety app Citizen, says it plans to make it a lot easier for retailers who sell directly to their customers to make re-ordering their products just as fast and simple through its QR codes. Indeed, Maresco’s new startup, Batch , is already working with numerous products and brands that use Shopify, promising their customers “one-tap checkout” when it’s time to re-order an item as long as the retailer has slapped one of Batch’s codes on their items or incorporated the codes directly into their packaging.”
Fintech Using Blockchain to Cut Foreign Exchange Costs
American Banker
“While many banks remain cautious about crypto and blockchain, the most appealing use case for these systems may be the most basic: lowering costs. With that in mind, New York-based Roxe has introduced blockchain for cross-border payments settlements. The purpose is to create Decentralized Finance, or DeFi, liquidity pools to provide the best wholesale foreign exchange rates to banks, businesses, payment companies or individuals. In general, DeFi is about creating an open market with an intent to transform traditional banking services into decentralized architectures to expand the use of digital money.”
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