Mobile phones have increasingly become tools that consumers use for banking, payments, budgeting, and shopping. Given the rapid pace of developments in the area of mobile finance, the Federal Reserve Board began conducting annual surveys of consumers’ use of mobile financial services in 2011. This 78-page report, “Consumers and Mobile Financial Services” (March, 2015) examines trends in the adoption and use of mobile banking, payments, and shopping behavior and how the emergence of mobile financial services affects consumers’ interaction with financial institutions.
Discover Issues Contactless Payment Cards and Stickers to Members
Discover card has announced that it will issue contactless credit cards and stickers, targeted at early adopters of its mobile technology. The cards, called Discover Zip were sent out to select cardholders during the first two weeks of November. More cards and stickers will be sent to additional cardmembers starting in January 2011.
Discover Zip is an payment solution that enables quick, secure transactions using contactless technology. Consumers simply touch a payment device, which is in the form of either a plastic card or a sticker that can be applied to a mobile phone or any other item, to a Zip-enabled contactless reader to make a payment.
According to Discover, there are more than 100,000 U.S. merchants that offer contactless readers that accept Zip transactions at the point-of-sale, including quick service restaurants, gas station and convenient stores, retailers and pharmacies, and public transit agencies.
“At Discover, we put a high bar on value to the customer, and are always evaluating technology solutions that make things faster, safer, and more convenient for our cardmembers,” said Mark Scarborough, senior vice president of cardmember marketing at Discover. “Given how tied consumers are to their mobile devices, we know they will appreciate the tremendous value and convenience Discover Zip contactless cards and stickers provide.”
Source: Business Wire