Until now, Swish has mostly been used for account-to-account transactions and, more recently, ecommerce payments. Now, the popular payment app is working with Nets to expand into the retail and service sectors by piloting in-store mobile payment functionality.

Pär Ekroth, marketing manager, Swish, says: "Seven million Swedes walk around with the Swish app in their pocket, and it’s clear that the demand for easier in-store payments is increasing. As such, we are pleased to offer mobile payments functionality to our customers.”

For the trials, Swish will be tethered to a Bluetooth module developed by Nets that provides an NFC-like ‘tap and pay’ experience for consumers. Integration with merchants’ systems requires only the addition of a ‘Bluetooth box’ to Nets payment acceptance terminals.

The in-store payments functionality also enables better loyalty programmes, as Bluetooth technology opens up use cases such as real-time, geo-tagged offers.

Nets already provides this Bluetooth feature to Danish merchants, enabling them to accept in-store payments from locally issued wallets.

Jan Lundequist, SVP, Nets Merchant Services, says: "The payment experience is similar to making a contactless payment, which consumers are accustomed to - particularly in countries like Sweden with high digital penetration. Not only can merchants easily install the solution and accept Swish payments through their existing Nets terminals, but it’s also easy and intuitive for consumers to use."