Tag: qr code payments

NFC technology making its way into Romania

| June 12, 2013

Seamless, a company from Sweden, has brought the new mobile payments tech to the country.

Swedish mobile payments firm, Seamless, has just partnered with Garanti Bank out of Turkey in order to bring a new system to Romania based on QR codes and NFC technology.

This will allow Seamless to launch its SEQR NFC and QR code based payments in the Romanian marketplace.

The Seamless mobile payments system allows users to complete transactions by waving their enabled smartphones over a reader device, or by scanning QR codes. These NFC technology and QR code based options will become available within the next few weeks, according to the companies.

Both QR codes and NFC technology will be offered in order to ensure compatibility with devices.

Romania NFC Technology and QR CodesAccording to Peter Fredell, the Seamless CEO, the company is offering systems using both NFC technology and QR code scans when taking the first steps into markets. It also stated that it has been running various pilot programs for the last half year in the country. Fredell also used the word “interesting” to describe the Romanian market, and that it was the Garanti Bank that approached them about entering into the market in Romania for the first time.

At the moment, Romanians don’t use credit cards very heavily. In fact, 79 percent of transactions are currently made in cash. The belief, said Fredell, is that this indicates that there is far greater potential for NFC technology mobile payments in this type of market than there is in Western European countries where there is a much higher use of credit cards. He also stated that it is the banks that are introducing the cashless systems and that are among the primary drivers of this type of change This will help to decrease the cash handling costs within the country, should it be as successful as they hope.

Seamless is headquartered in Stockholm, Sweeden, and is a global mobile payments company. It currently operates in over 30 countries worldwide. This organization focuses on mobile payments and prepaid top-up services for distributors, mobile operators, consumers, and retailers. It will be offering its services with Garanti Bank through NFC technology in Romania for the first time.

QR codes may lead to the end of checks by 2018

| June 10, 2013

The barcodes located on bills, combined with payment apps could bring an end to paper payments in Australia.

The quick and easy use of QR codes located on utility and other types of household bills could lead to the end of the use of paper checks sent through the mail as early as five years from now.

The convenience of simply scanning the barcode with a smartphone to pay a bill is very appealing to Australians.

These QR codes are now being found on a growing number of household bills, including from the massive utility companies Sydney Water and Australian Power & Gas. These are only the first billers to use them, but systems are now in place to allow a rapidly growing number of companies to print them on their invoices. For instance, BPay has just finished launching the technology in a big bank owned joint venture so that many more opportunities will soon begin opening up for customers.

This rapid growth of QR codes for making mobile payments could begin an important shift in transaction trends.

QR Codes - No more checksThis is an opportunity for consumers and billers alike as the use of QR codes to help with bill payments is far less costly than using checks or even cash. The number of billers who will be introducing these barcodes on their paper bills is now about to experience a very rapid rise.

The advantage to consumers is that all that they will need to do to pay their bills is to use their smartphones to scan the QR codes using a free scanning app. This will automatically populate their own unique payment methods – such as their online banking page – with the details that they would need to type in manually using any other online technique.

Equally, the billers are able to benefit from the QR codes because it will rapidly and automatically reduce the number of data entry errors that can lead to delays in payments. The rapid support for the use of the new barcodes amidst additional plans by the banking sector to implement smartphone friendly strategy will have Australia heading forward with this type of plan at a much faster pace than many other countries of similar sizes and economies.