The Chinese smartphone transaction system is launching in the western continent with a start in Canada.
China’s UnionPay mobile payments system is now in North America. It took its first steps into the continent by launching in Canada. This mobile transaction service is the international subsidiary of the Chinese interbank network. The network functions to link the credit and debit card payments throughout that country’s banks.
UnionPay International is enormous, placing third in the world as a payment network.
Only Visa and MasterCard are larger payment networks than UnionPay. This is primarily because of its reach throughout China and its recent rapid expansion outside the country. Now that UnionPay mobile payments launched in Canada, its QuickPass system will be available to many Canadian merchants. It will be focused on “daily spending” merchants in that country. This represents the first time the system has entered North America, despite its wide expansion elsewhere.
UnionPay mobile payments can be used with QuickPass enabled smartphones or EMV chip cards.
There is a QuickPass spending cap at $100 (CAD) for transactions without a PIN or signature when using either credit or debit. This is meant to enhance the system’s mobile security. Moreover, it will make it fast and easy for Canadian consumers to use the system without having to enter a PIN.
As of yet, it is not known precisely how many Canadian merchants are interested in these mobile payments. The number of companies participating in QuickPass was not revealed at the launch. However, UnionPay has said that there will at least be more than 70,000 merchants with the required tech. It also pointed out that the infrastructure in the country is well suited to accept contactless payments.
Therefore, there is potential that a sizeable percentage of those with the ability to accept contactless payments will participate.
At the moment, the North American launch of UnionPay mobile payments is exclusive to Canada. However, there is a very large potential audience in the rest of the continent. This may mean that the company is setting up to subtly become a direct competitor with certain leading mobile wallets such as Apple Pay.
Intel and UnionPay to develop new mobile payments platform
Intel has announced a new collaboration with China UnionPay, the only domestic bank card organization in China. The two companies will work together to create a new, secure platform for mobile payments. China has become a hub for mobile technology and many consumers are beginning to show strong favor for mobile commerce. In order to accommodate the needs of consumers, UnionPay has begun to take the issue of mobile payments more seriously.
Intel to leverage its security technology for new platform
Security is one of the major challenges that continues to serve as a roadblock to the widespread adoption of mobile payments. Mobile devices are beginning to traffic a significant amount of valuable financial information. This information has become a very attractive target for hackers and malicious groups looking to exploit this information. To address the security problem, Intel leveraging its Identity Protection Technology for the new mobile payments platform. UnionPay accounts for 3.5 billion bank cards, which are accepted in at least 141 countries around the world. Providing these consumers with a secure way to engage in mobile commerce may help mobile payments finally attain the momentum needed to begin replacing more conventional forms of commerce.
UnionPay showcases NFC-based mobile commerce service
UnionPay has also begun showing off its Quick Pass service, which in a mobile commerce service that makes use of NFC technology. More than 1.1 million NFC-enabled point-of-sale terminals were installed in December of 2012 in order to serve as an infrastructure for the Quick Pass service. This service is meant to perform alongside the mobile payments platform that Intel and UnionPay are currently developing.
Mobile commerce continues to find success in Aisa
Mobile commerce has found a great deal of traction in the Asian market. With mobile technology penetration high in many sectors of the market, mobile commerce has been able to establish a strong foothold in several countries. There are, of course, security concerns regarding the widespread adoption of mobile commerce, but companies like Intel and UnionPay are working to put these concerns to rest through the establishment of adequate security systems that will protect a consumer’s financial information.
