Multicard expands mobile payments in Netherlands
27 October, 2011
category: NFC
Multicard has announced the expanded roll out of its Cashless Betalen mobile banking solution with NFC payment stickers across the Netherlands.
Cashless Betalen, the account management application behind the digital wallet offered by Rabobank, enables users to check their account balances, transfer and deposit funds and make payments and can be accessed via any connected mobile device. As part of the roll out, Multicard is also providing digital wallet customers with NFC stickers, or “tokens,” that can be affixed to the back of a user’s mobile phone to purchase items with a simple tap at the point of sale.
According to Multicard, the NFC tokens contain the user’s digital wallet account number, which is protected by “strong encryption.” Customers can purchase the NFC stickers or other payment tokens through the Cashless Betalen online market.
The service, which was first tested with Dutch hockey clubs in July, is now accepted at more than 50 locations and boasts some 150,000 digital wallet users, according to Pieter Kooistra, managing director of Multicard Netherlands.
Multicard is marketing Cashless Betalen to supermarkets, restaurants and retail chains, as well as universities, hospitals, large corporations and sports stadiums. The company is also offering contactless payment tokens in the form of colorful wristbands and rubber toys for the youth market.
Multicard is working with Rabobank’s 145 branch offices in the Netherlands to share marketing information and provide training on making mobile payments with Cashless Betalen. Multicard says they have already signed up 15 of the largest food service providers in the Netherlands, who collectively cover 80 percent of the market.
