Jan. 16, 2019
ABN Amro is rolling out a wearables program to let customers make contactless payments on Garmin smart watches, Fitbit trackers and other devices including rings and bracelets, according to a press release.
The rollout marks what the bank said will be the first program to use wearables for higher dollar purchases at the point of sale and a PIN code. The wearables will require a PIN code for purchases between 25 euros [$28.47] going up to 250 euros [$284.70].
ABN Amro said 80 percent the participants in a pilot program preferred using the wearables over traditional bank card payments. The bank tested the use of bracelets, rings and watches with 500 clients over a 12-month period with Mastercard and DigiSEq.
"The 500 clients thought very highly of this payment method, reporting how good it was to not always have to bring their debit cards when going out or taking part in sports," said Yvonne Duits, product owner, payments at ABN Amro, in the release.
The Amsterdam-based lender will feature a website where customers can buy the wearables, which include a Mastercard-certified payment chip. The bank said the payments program will only work with retail clients of the bank, not business clients. The wearable has to be registered and activated through the bank's internet or mobile site.
Beyond the Garmin smartwatches, the payment feature is available on watches from Mondaine and Olympic, zirconia ceramic rings from K-ring, watches, key rings and bracelets from Laks. Availability of the Fitbit watches has not been announced as of yet.
Topics: Contactless / NFC, Mobile Banking, Region: EMEA, Retail
Companies: ABN AMRO Bank N.V., Garmin
Sponsored Links: