Tag: united kingdom

Apple and Alibaba may be partnering on mobile payments

| May 15, 2015

Apple and Alibaba are in talks about expanding Apple Pay to China

A new partnership that could have a significant impact on the mobile payments space may be taking form. Apple and Alibaba are reportedly in talks to team up on the matter of mobile payments. Apple is also in negotiations with Chinese banks in order to make mobile payments possible for iOS  users in China. According to Apple CEO Tim Cook, the company is very eager to bring Apple Pay to China.

China continues to thrive as a mobile market

China is home to one of the fastest mobile payment sectors in the world. Alibaba has been pushing to expand the mobile payments space throughout the country. The company launched its own payments service called Alipay, which is the leading payment platform for mobile consumers in the country. Alibaba has been making strategic partnerships with various companies to make mobile shopping and payments easier for consumers.

Apple Pay may soon expand beyond the United States

Company News - Apple and Alibaba my form mobile payments partnershipApple Pay launched in October of last year, but is currently only available in the United States. Apple is looking for ways to expand the service into other markets, such as Canada and the United Kingdom. China may become the next market that Apple expands its mobile payments service into, and the country could become a major victory in Apple’s ongoing mobile payments fight. Apple will have to work with Chinese banks in order to make expansion possible, however, which could be a complicated matter as many banks have already sided with Alibaba concerning mobile payments.

Alibaba continues to show dominance in the mobile payments space

Alibaba is currently the largest supporter of mobile payments in China. The company has been competing with several others in order to maintain its position in the market and has managed to succeed in this endeavor. A deal with Apple to bring Apple Pay to China could be a boon for Alibaba, as it is also one of the largest Internet retailers in the country. Supporting multiple forms of mobile payments has proven to be a practice that is supported by consumers.

Visa to expand its mobile payments service to the UK

| May 7, 2015

Visa will be launching its mobile payments platform in the UK in June of this year

Visa has announced that it will be expanding its mobile payments service in Europe. Visa Europe has formed numerous partnerships with retailers and merchants in the United Kingdom, where mobile payments are beginning to gain momentum. The company has also formed partnerships with British banks in order to better compete with other mobile payment platforms that have launched in the country. Visa plans to launch its expanded service in the United Kingdom in June of this year, with 60,000 people being able to use the service at that time.

Digital wallet helps make payments more convenient

Visa’s mobile payments platform, which serves as a digital wallet, was initially launched in 2013. The platform allows users to make purchases online without having to provide their financial information more than once. One of the attractive features of the platform its use of digital tokens, which are used in place of financial information, making mobile transactions more secure. Visa suggests that its platform is more convenient than others, as it can save consumers time when making a purchase online.

Mobile spending is on the rise in the United Kingdom

UK Mobile Payments - VisaAccording to a recent report from Barclays, consumers in the United Kingdom are expected to spend more than $60 billion a year using their smartphones and tablets by 2024. Last year, British consumers spent a combined $10 billion from their mobile devices. Mobile payments are becoming a more attractive option to consumers in the UK, largely due to how convenient nature of mobile commerce and the services that are being offered by numerous companies participating in this space.

Security concerns lead to better protection for consumers

Though mobile payments are becoming more popular, there are security concerns that could slow its growth and adoption. Visa has been working to address these security concerns, using tokenization as a way to protect consumers and their financial information. Biometric technology, such as fingerprint scanners are also becoming more important in the mobile space, as this technology can be used to provide more protection to the mobile commerce space.