What’s the news from the MEF community? Here’s your weekly round up of all the latest announcements from MEF members including product launches, partnerships, research insights and more…
Gemalto ramps up fraud prevention in digital banking
Gemalto has unveiled the Gemalto Assurance Hub, which analyses the profile and behaviour of customers in real time to detect potential attacks.
The hub processes millions of transactions built from thousands of attributes (such as device profiling, location, user behavior, biometric data or keypad style). It can then flag unusual patterns and request a higher level of authentication.
Bertrand Knopf, EVP of banking and payment at Gemalto, said: “The challenge is to minimise and simplify security procedures, without compromising trust in the digital banking domain. This is what the Gemalto Assurance Hub does so easily.”
Docomo Digital targets sharing economy with NOMO
Docomo Digital has launched what it says is the first free wallet-to-wallet payment network ever developed for gig and sharing economies.
NOMO will integrate into any marketplace transaction system, and then automate pay-outs to vendor’s wallets. Users can keep track of their funds and transactions using the NOMO mobile app, spend their balance, as well as receive tailored offers from partnering marketplaces.
The subscription-based service works with any traditional online payment solution.
Hiroyuki Sato, CEO of DOCOMO Digital, said: “The ability for vendors to spend their wallet balance without having to pay a fee should unlock new opportunities. In brief, we designed NOMO as a particle accelerator for sharing economy stakeholders.”
Wirecard to bring Poynt POS terminals to Europe and Asia
Poynt’s eye-catching mPOS devices are expanding outside of the US, thanks to a distribution deal with Wirecard.
The terminal comprises an innovative dual screen design that accepts chip and PIN, EMV and NFC and connects to 3G and Wi-fi. It also supports third party software via the Poynt App store.
Now, Wirecard will take the device to merchants in Europe and Asia.
Jörn Leogrande, EVP of mobile services at Wirecard, said: “Poynt’s smart future-driven features have upgraded the payment terminal experience with the intelligence of a smartphone. Via the connection with our processing services, we will give businesses access to unparalleled tools to help them grow.”
Turnover and profit up at IMImobile
Cloud comms provider IMImobile has revealed preliminary results for the year to 31 March, which show revenue up 24 per cent to £76.1m. Operating profit rose 19 per cent to £4.9m.
The board said the company had “maintained momentum” since its IPO, and cited a “good contribution” from India and South East Asia in particular, with gross profit growth of 31 per cent in the region.
“There’s an overwhelming need banks, mobile operators, retailers, utilities and major brands to invest in improving customer experience, predominantly through digital channels,” said chief executive Jay Patel.
“Our strategy is to be at the heart of these digital interactions for our clients.”
Asia Pacific lags in LTE data roaming, says Syniverse
A report by mobile comms firm Syniverse says just six per cent of all data roaming traffic occurs in Asia Pac.
The firm analysed traffic across over 1,000 MNOs to reveal the imbalance. Asia Pac is home to 2.7 billion mobile users and includes many advanced operators. But it lags badly in LTE roaming traffic.
Mary Clark, chief corporate relations officer at Syniverse, said: “Mobile users worldwide expect the same service experience overseas as they do at home – from basic voice calling to high-speed video streaming. Enabling high-quality, reliable LTE roaming across Asia and the world is essential for mobile operators to drive revenue, growth and innovation.”
American Express comes to Android Pay in Canada
Amex’s Canadian customers can now load their cards inside Android smartphones in order to pay by NFC or inside apps.
The move is part of Amex’s commitment to mobile, which has also seen the firm improve its own app with features such as Use Points for Purchases and push notifications.
“At American Express, we’re committed to offering fast and easy ways for our Cardmembers to make purchases,” says Megan McKee, VP of Consumer Cards, American Express Canada. “Whether they’re shopping in-stores or in-apps, our cardmembers now have the option to use Android Pay while continuing to receive all the benefits and rewards from Amex.”
China Unicom Global takes on BICS’ instant roaming hub
Giant MNO China Unicom has selected BICS to roll out roaming services with carriers all over the world.
The partnership will enable China Unicom to launch roaming with minimal investment and in quick time. BICS says its own stats reveal the number of roaming customers increased by 34 per cent year on year. Data roaming traffic was up 265 per cent.
Nicholas Nikrouyan, chief commercial officer at BICS, said: “By using BICS’s one-stop-shop Instant Roaming solution, operator customers like China Unicom eliminate the complexities and inefficiencies of the traditional bilateral agreement model usually required to achieve global roaming.”