Apple Pay Rival CurrentC Launching in Limited Trial Next Month as Exclusivity Expires

[glutenenvy]

For people that prefer checks instead of using cards, most we have seen in our shop are using checks not because they don't have or cannot get cards, but because they don't like cards or don't trust cards. These customers would seem to be a primary target for CurrentC in its current form. I cannot see a customer that prefers cash and check to ever want a smartphone based payment system, even if you pay them to use it.

If mom-and-pops were to get CurrentC transactions at no cost, didn't have to invest in any new equipment, tied into existing Windows and OS X POS, and managed to create a free loyalty card system, I could see CurrentC struggling on while it tried to gain traction with cards.

However, it is more likely is that US based mom-and-pops will be possibly getting the Square chip and pin system in interim to comply with changing liability rules, while researching what chip and pin and nfc terminals will work with their POS and banks. CurrentC is soon to miss their one good chance to gain ground as shops switch methods if card support is still missing.

 

[Banyan Bruce]

Apple Pay at BP in the UK has a limit of £20. Station assistant proudly announced that next month limit will be raise to £30. As I usually buy diesel in £60 lots, this isn't going to be very helpful.

 

[Keirasplace]

It was pushed in most other places via a combination of a) the government mandating it and/or b) a small set of banks being forward thinking and adopting it before people even think about doing (a). The only consideration for US banks is profit and the only reason we're even doing it now is because their profit's actually starting to take a hit.

I imagine adopting some sort of easy to use person to person money transfer system/getting rid of checks will happen in a similar fashion but that's a different discussion altogether. Who knows, most people may just have a Venmo, a Google and a Square Cash account to make sure they can send/receive money from anyone.

In Canada, everyone can send money too anyone using interact emails. Need the email of the recipient and you give them the access code for the transaction and that's it. They can cash the money right away if they have their smart phone with them (so you could pay someone at flee market like that for example).

 

[Keirasplace]

Why anyone would want to pay with their bank account is beyond me. Some "geniuses" at my school in the UK came up with something similar for paying at the cafeteria. You'd connect your bank account and pay with that. What about if I want to earn credit card points? CurrentC is the worst thing ever invented.

Well, debit cards are technically, "paying with your bank account", but I already trust the bank with keeping my money secure, so I'm OK with that. They already got all my financial info ;-).

 

[tmiw]

In Canada, everyone can send money too anyone using interact emails. Need the email of the recipient and you give them the access code for the transaction and that's it. They can cash the money right away if they have their smart phone with them (so you could pay someone at flee market like that for example).

I can see Visa really throwing a fit over attempts to do something like that here. They'd rather flea market people use something like Square so they can get "their" 2-3% or whatever.

 

[Sinfonist]

In any case it seems to be a poor plan to do a limited roll-out after, what, two years of talking about this system. I recall Apple demoed Apple Pay and it went live US wide about 6 months later with full functionality and as many cards, banks and retailers as wanted to participate.

Apple has probably been working on this for 4-5 years (hardware, software prototypes, merchant deals).
That's why they can do a quick rollout.

 

[crashoverride77]

Google is your friend. But I give you the short version:

Paymit is a free transaction standard for any bank to adapt upon wish, no transaction fees (so far banks are generous), can make use of any available security features of existing systems as well as hardware features (like touchID), not bound to a specific device, not bound to a technology like NFC, not bound to credit cards, can be directly linked to bank accounts if banks wish to choose so. Currently designed for P2P but in strong evolution towards the commercial market (expected within a few months). Only three months since the initial release but with a huge momentum both on the customer as well as on the banks side, strong marketing here in Switzerland, will go internationally eventually. How does it work? Your phone becomes your terminal, on both sides of the transaction. One side types in the price you have to pay, the other pays. Same app, same UI, very easy. No additional middleman, no collusion between banks.

That is a practical solution.

That sounds meh.
As Tim Cook said "it turns out people like their credit cards..."

 

[tbrinkma]

Apply Pay is nice and all ... but it requires an iPhone. There are still millions of people that use other types of phones ... so options are a good thing.

But there's already an Android implementation of the same NFC standard Apple Pay uses. (Surprisingly *not* using the 'Google Wallet' name.) Apple was simply the first to implement the newer NFC payment standard, they're not the *only* ones to do so.

 

[tbrinkma]

Use NFC, but not quite as cleverly as Apple Pay works. (No kidding). I'm glad I had to tell you this. ;0)

No, Google Wallet used the older NFC payment standard. The new Android Pay uses the same NFC payment standard as Apple Pay. I still have no idea why they didn't keep the Google Wallet name, though.

 

[SixtyK]

ApplePay "rival" CurrentC...

 

[SixtyK]

Apply Pay is nice and all ... but it requires an iPhone. There are still millions of people that use other types of phones ... so options are a good thing.

Google wallet is actually an excellent alternative for those people, and works everywhere ApplePay does.

 

[tbrinkma]

Most retailers now process checks as ACH transactions, so the money is instantly debited from the checking account. No way to write a bad check. It will simply reject it if the money is not in the account.

Though you're right, a debit card would be much easier.

Except that many places charge a fee (often times larger than the corresponding ATM fee) to use a debit card. This isn't an issue, if your debit card is a Visa/MasterCard debit card, since you can use those as if they were a credit card (thus avoiding the fee), but not all of them are.

In those places, writing the check saves you $2-5.

 

[tmiw]

Except that many places charge a fee (often times larger than the corresponding ATM fee) to use a debit card.

Yeah, they're not supposed to do that regardless of how you run the debit card. I would also like to know who charges $2-3 fees for using a card since I've only seen 50c at most with the places around here that do.

 

[kdarling]

she stole your card without your permission?

did you file a police report?

In the US, if you seem to be having trouble with your card being read on a customer-facing terminal, it's pretty common for clerks to reach out their hand to take the card so they can swipe it on their cash register reader instead. It's all done right in front of you.