ANZ launches digital wallet for 'tap-and-go' smartphone payments

ANZ's Liz Maguire explains how the bank's smartphone wallet works.

Users of goMoney Wallet upload their cards to the app, then swipe their phone to make payments at contactless terminals.

ANZ is launching its own mobile wallet app, available to about 90,000 customers from Tuesday.

The goMoney wallet allows customers to make contactless payments by tapping their Android smartphones to a terminal.

ANZ is the first New Zealand bank to release its own digital wallet.

While it remains a shareholder in the Semble joint venture, it did not participate in the launch earlier in the year.

Semble aims to digitise a broad range of cards including payments, transport and loyalty, with launch partners including ASB and BNZ.

ANZ's head of digital channels and transformation, Liz Maguire, said goMoney Wallet would support ANZ Visa debit and personal Visa credit cards.

Adding a mobile wallet had been the number one request when goMoney customers were surveyed earlier in the year.

Maguire said the key benefit of the wallet was that it was within the existing ANZ app, removing the need for a separate app or SIM card upgrade.

That felt like a "much better customer experience" than the Semble process, she said.

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ANZ's wallet does not store personal, account or card information on the phone or SIM card.

Users of goMoney Wallet upload their cards to the app, then swipe their phone to make payments at contactless terminals.

Instead it uses cloud-based technology called host card emulation (HCE) to store customer details remotely.

Maguire said the virtual cards had the exact same assurances as a physical plastic card.

Anyone who lost their phone should contact the bank immediately.

Like a regular contactless card, a PIN number would be required for purchases over $80.

Westpac, which pulled out of the Semble launch along with ANZ, is also trialling HCE technology.

The bank recently said it was happy with the results of its pilot, but has not met its original target of rolling out publicly in early 2015.

One of the major limitations for mobile wallets is Apple's refusal to open its near field communication (NFC) technology to third parties.

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"Apple have tied down the NFC capability to Apple Pay only," Maguire said.

Once the company arrived in New Zealand "we'd be delighted to talk to them".

The ANZ wallet will work with about 20 different Android smartphones initially, with more models to come after Christmas.

Compatible devices must use operating system version 4.4 or above, have NFC capability, and meet the bank's payment performance standards.

Maguire said ANZ remained in close conversations with Semble and had not ruled out participating down the track.

Semble has not released any uptake figures, but Google Play numbers suggest between 11,000 to 25,000 people have downloaded the app.

Semble's chief executive Rob Ellis has previously said he hoped ANZ and Westpac would return to the fold.

How do mobile wallets work?

The key technology, called NFC, allows devices to talk with each other using radio waves when brought into close contact.

Can I get it?

ASB and BNZ offer digital cards through the Semble app, and ANZ through its own mobile banking app. Westpac also plans to launch its own wallet.

But I have an iPhone?

Sorry- neither Semble nor the ANZ wallet will work. Apple has its own payment service, Apple Pay, which has not yet reached New Zealand. It is experiencing some difficulties in markets outside the US.

Is this the next big thing?

Achieving a walletless society relies on everyone having a suitably advanced phone, as well as a critical mass in the number of shops with contactless terminals.

These are being rolled out by many major retailers as they replace old machines, but still a long way from ubiquity.

Is it safe?

Banks and card companies provide the same assurances as they do for physical contactless cards. There is a zero liability policy for any fraud or theft that the customer did not contribute to.

What's HCE?

A cloud-based technology that stores customer details remotely, compared to the more established method of encrypting details as a "secure element" on a physical SIM card.

Semble currently uses encrypted SIM cards, but is looking into HCE.

 - Stuff

Source: ANZ launches digital wallet for 'tap-and-go' smartphone payments