Since January 2007, Visa has been working with financial institutions and telecommunications companies to bring mobile payment technology and payment-related services to Visa^® cardholders. This work effort was validated by a recent* survey that showed 51% of respondents would be interested in a cell phone with mobile payment capabilities.

New technologies, such as EMV chip and Near Field Communication (NFC), are making it possible to turn a cell phone into an electronic wallet in the near future.

Mobile payments are payments made with a cell phone rather than a card. These transactions can be made in person at the retailer (through a secure contactless reader) or remotely (through text messaging or a mobile browser). Mobile payments offer a convenient and secure way to pay.

Visa and Mobile Payments

Visa will soon be able to offer Canadian Visa cardholders the ability to make contactless transactions with a cell phone. The Visa Mobile Platform will allow for purchases to be completed with a simple wave of a cell phone, programmed with the Visa payWave^™ application, in front of a secure contactless reader. Such purchases will be authorized and processed in the same secure way as traditional Visa card transactions.

The Mobile Payments Revolution

Financial institutions and mobile networks in a number of countries (Malyasia, South Korea, Japan, Finaland, Australia, Germany and Taiwan) have announced plans to launch mobile payment market trials. These trials reflect the growing movement towards a mobile payments revolution.

*Visa Mobile Payments Research, October 2007, conducted by Hotspex

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