NFC World

The contactless transaction limit in Switzerland and Liechtenstein is to be temporarily increased from 40 francs (US$41.60) to 80 francs (US$83.21) “in order to protect customers”. The increase will be applied by Visa, Mastercard and American Express “as well as all card issuers and service partners in Switzerland,” Postfinance, the financial services division of Swiss […]

Customers of Starling Bank are now able to request an additional, specially restricted payment card that can be given to a friend, family member or volunteer shopper “to buy essential items on their behalf”. “The Connected card has been designed to help personal account customers who are self-isolating during the coronavirus emergency and are relying

The impact of the coronavirus pandemic “will restrict the growth of MaaS platforms in 2020”, a new forecast from Juniper Research predicts, but MaaS initiatives “will rebound quickly in 2021 as cities re-evaluate their transport strategies”. Revenues generated by Mobility-as-a-Service (MaaS) platforms will exceed $52bn by 2027, up from $405m in 2020, the researchers say.

Contactless transaction limits are being increased in Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda and Mauritius, Mastercard has announced. In Kenya, the limit is being increased from KES 2,500 (US$23.51) to KES 3,500 (US$32.92) while Tanzania is raising it from TZS 55,000 (US$23.76) to TZS 80,000 (US$34.56). In Uganda, the limit is increasing from UGX 90,000 (US$23.84) to UGX

Belgium is to increase the contactless transaction limit from €25 ($US27.07) to €50 ($US54.54) from 14 April, “to curb the spread of the coronavirus”. “For those who make several consecutive contactless card payments without a PIN, the cumulative limit is also increased to €100 ($US109.07),” Belgian financial services federation Febelfin says. “In the past you

The pandemic may result in increased calls to defend the role of cash, moves towards more quickly introducing central bank digital currencies and a structural increase in the use of mobile, card and online payments, a Bank for International Settlements (BIS) research bulletin analysing the likely impact of Covid-19 says. “Irrespective of whether concerns are

UK supermarket chains Asda and M&S Food are making it possible for customers who are self-isolating to prepay online for purchases that volunteer shoppers can then make in-store on their behalf. The supermarket chains are leveraging their existing digital gift card services to facilitate the new option. M&S Food’s We’re All in this Together cards

Walmart has updated its mobile app to remove the need for shoppers to make physical contact with a self-checkout station when paying with the retail giant’s QR-based Walmart Pay service. “Checking out at Walmart will be completely contact-free on any register when you use Walmart Pay on the Walmart app in the coming week,” the

US supermarket chain Publix has rolled out contactless payments across its 1,243 stores “to protect the health and well-being of its customers and associates during the coronavirus pandemic… Read the rest of Coronavirus prompts Publix to install contactless payments in all its US supermarkets at NFCW.

An analysis of the global payments industry by McKinsey & Company predicts that Covid-19 will result in a loss of revenues of between US$165bn and US$210bn in 2020 — and sets out “ten fundamental changes to the payments ecosystem that will help all of us find a new normal.” Read the rest of McKinsey: Coronavirus