A look at better ways to pay

Source: Wirecard. Ho.

Think there's nothing wrong with the way you pay for goods and services? A number of vendors have been working to transform all aspects of payments in 2018 – making it swifter, more seamless, and more secure.

In early December, Rambus announced that Bank Islam Brunei Darussalam (BIBD), the largest bank in Brunei, has selected the Rambus Token Service Provider (TSP) as part of its mobile payment strategy to enable secure transactions to its customers.

The Rambus TSP solution helps secure the BIBD NEXGEN mobile banking app, allowing customers to digitise their cards and send payments without revealing sensitive payment information. The Rambus software platform replaces cardholders’ details with unique reference numbers to minimise the risk of fraud and the severity of data breaches. Unique payment tokens are worthless if stolen, Rambus points out.

Said Dr Gyorgy Ladics, COO, BIBD at the time of the announcement: “While digital payment methods grow exponentially in the marketplace, customers are becoming increasingly mobile-centric; therefore, it’s imperative to facilitate mobile transactions in a hassle-free and secure manner, providing the ultimate ease of mind for our customers.”

Like Dr Ladics, Jeffry Ho, Regional MD, APAC for Wirecard, believes that mobile technology is changing the way we pay. “In Asia Pacific, there is a growing demand for mobile payments services due to increasing smartphone penetration. Closer to home, mobile payments using credit card-linked apps or wallets have gained popularity among Singaporeans and we can expect to see more card holders moving towards mobile payment platforms,” he said.

Source: UnionPay International.

Ling.

Vincent Ling, Deputy GM, UnionPay International South East Asia agreed. “Mobile payments are gaining traction in Singapore. In fact, six in 10 Singaporeans (58%) have used at least one mobile payment method – either QR code, peer-to-peer (P2P) transfer or contactless payments –in the last three months,” he said, quoting from The Future of Payments Study, conducted by UnionPay International in partnership with Nielsen with 400 mobile payment users in Singapore this year.

Ho also predicted that 2019 could also be a big year for biometric payments, potentially overtaking the use of cards for payments, especially in the retail space. The solutions are ready - Wirecard has an Internet of Things (IoT) shelf which also uses biometric facial recognition, for example.

“To respond to these evolving technologies, businesses need to evolve the way they interact with customers, offering a seamless omnichannel experience that is fast, convenient and secure. The payments industry also needs to ensure greater integration of these new payments services across all channels, as consumers become inundated with new digital experiences and a vast array of payment options – which can lead to confusion and inefficiencies,” he advised.

Authenticating someone using a trusted digital identity that relies partly on biometrics will take hold in 2019, says Tan Teck Lee, Asia President Government Business Unit and Singapore Country Head, Gemalto.

Source: Gemalto. Tan.

“As opposed to a person's declared identity, a trusted digital identity uses verification steps to prove that a person is who they say they are," he said. "The average person already owns multiple digital identities to access a range of different services. Yet as more important services move online, it's critical that digital identities reflect real, verifiable identities."

An identity token that is created by matching a passenger’s biometric information (face or fingerprint) to their travel reservation and ID could save processing time at airports for example, he said. "In 2019 and beyond, we foresee a growing movement towards improved forms of trusted digital identity management, based on the verification of identity documents, biometrics and trusted third parties."

Ling cautioned that the cashless goal is not going to be realised overnight, as was found by the UnionPay research. “Respondents estimated that it would take Singapore around 12 years on average to go completely cashless. A similar study conducted with 400 mobile payment users in Thailand yielded the same finding – respondents also projected that it will take their country 12 years to go completely cashless.

“While the road towards a cashless society may seem long to most, we believe that with the right cashless payment solutions that can catalyse large-scale adoption, coupled with the right partnerships among governments, financial institutions, payment networks and fintech players, we can make a bigger impact collectively to accelerate this journey,” he said.

Both Ling and Ho said that more work has to be done.

“As we look forward to 2019, collaboration and innovation is essential – as the financial industry works towards providing more efficient and user-focused experiences in customer journeys,” Ho said.

“In order to accelerate the cashless drive, there is a need to unify payment solutions and foster close collaborations between public and private sector. Singapore has already made several significant steps in the right direction. Firstly, the introduction of unified point-of-sale (POS) terminals which provides convenience and ease of processing payments for merchants in Singapore.

"Secondly, the launch of SGQR which will improve convenience and clarity to merchants as well as consumers by combining multiple QR codes into a single SGQR label while enabling interoperability across payment systems.

“We also believe that the financial industry needs to focus on continuous education for consumers and merchants on the benefits of going cashless as well as the reality of opportunity cost when using cash,” Ling concluded.

Explore:

Browse the full list of 2018 round-ups and 2019 predictions in TechTrade Asia

Read about the collaborations between Singtel Dash and Visa as well as Wirecard to enable cross-standards e-payments