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digital money
Q&A with Dan Tuckman, Samsung Pay
are Samsung Pay users gener- ally doing?
DT: Roughly 72 percent of trans- actions made with Samsung Pay
at the top 30 U.S. retailers used Samsung’s proprietary Magnetic Secure Transmission (MST). MST is a technology that emits a magnetic signal that mimics the magnetic stripe on a traditional payment card. MST is more secure than using a traditional payment card and is as secure as paying with NFC. The key di erence is that MST technology was designed
to be compatible with the majority of existing credit and debit card readers, so it works at more places than any other mobile payment service. That means merchants don’t have to make costly upgrades to their terminals. In addition, Samsung Pay is compatible with NFC-equipped terminals.
Paybefore: What countries or regions saw the introduction of your mobile wallet?
DT: Samsung Pay launched in August 2015 in South Korea and
in September 2015 in the U.S. market. Since launching in the U.S. with four banks and support for credit, debit and private label credit card payments, Samsung Pay is now supported by 300 major and regional banks and credit unions. In March 2016, Samsung Pay launched in China, and in June, Samsung Pay began operations in Spain, its rst market in Europe; Singapore, its rst within the South East Asian region; and Australia, its
rst market within the Oceania region; followed by Puerto Rico and Brazil in July. These launches mark a signi cant milestone in the service’s global expansion, with a number of additional markets still to come this year.
about 5 million registered users processed over $500 million in the rst six months, showing a strong adoption rate in South Korea and the U.S. The service had processed more than $1 billion in transactions since its launch. We also recently
Paybefore: For all the press, marketing and excitement around mobile wallets, the technology re- mains in its infancy. Javelin Strategy & Research, in fact, estimates that one-10th of 1 percent of retail transactions involve mobile wallets, though the rm predicts that mobile payments will hit $54 billion annually by 2019. What will it take to get more consumers to use mobile wallets more often?
DT: Samsung Pay is fueling strong consumer adoption and a growing partner ecosystem. In February 2016, Samsung announced that
launched the membership feature, which allows consumers to load their membership and loyalty cards into Samsung Pay, creating a more slimmed down wallet experience. We’re not only making it easier to pay, but also deepening relation- ships—making it easier than ever for consumers to use gift, loyalty and rewards programs at their favorite stores. We made an in- vestment in Samsung Pay so that our users will be able to discover new mobile experiences that are unique to Samsung, and we believe Samsung Pay, including the MST technology, is the start of what we
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