Barclays Pingit has become the first bank to join the Zapp mobile payments app. Customers choosing ‘Pay by Bank app’ will be offered the market-leading Barclays Pingit app as one way to pay, and millions of Pingit customers will be able to make mobile payments at major retailers across the country from launch.
Because Pingit is available for anyone to download as an app, whether or not they bank with Barclays, all consumers will be able to make Pay by Bank app payments from October 2015, as long as they have a UK bank or building society account and a smartphone with a UK-registered number.
The addition of payments via the Pingit app makes Zapp’s Pay by Bank app the UK’s first total market mobile payment solution, available to all consumers regardless of who they bank with, or which smartphone brand they use.
Pay by Bank app puts consumers firmly in control of their finances by letting them make near real time payments and choose which account they pay from.
Barclays plans to extend ‘Pay by Bank app’ to hundreds of Corporate Banking clients that currently accept Pingit payments, providing even more ways to increase sales from mobile phones and tablets. Barclays also plans to offer ‘Pay by Bank app’ payments to customers via their existing mobile banking app later this year.
Pay by Bank app transactions are protected by a consumer’s existing bank app security. And because the payments use secure digital “tokens”, customers never reveal any of their financial details (including bank account details) to merchants when they are shopping. All Pay by Bank app payments offer similar protections as exist today for debit card payments, ensuring that in the event of goods not being delivered or an issue with the payment the consumer will be covered.
The addition of ‘Pay by Bank app’ to the Pingit payments portfolio means that Barclays Corporate Banking will be able to act as a distributor of the new service to corporates operating in retail , transport, utilities, Local Authorities and financial services. In doing so Barclays Corporate Banking joins payment innovators WorldPay, Elavon, Optimal Payments, Realex and SagePay in being able to offer UK merchants the opportunity to take advantage of Pay by Bank app payments.
Sainsbury’s, Asda, House of Fraser, Thomas Cook and Shop Direct are among the major British retail brands that have already announced their support for Zapp as a way to deliver secure, convenient mobile payments to their customers.
Peter Keenan, Chief Executive of Zapp, commented, “We’re delighted to be able to announce that Pay by Bank app will now include Barclays Pingit. This means every UK consumer will be able to make Pay by Bank app mobile payments from October that are easier and more secure. This is a shining example of the financial and retail communities working together for the benefit of UK consumers.
Having Barclays come on board – with their huge scale and enviable reputation for innovation, coupled with their extensive corporate client base – reaffirms that Barclays and Zapp are at the cutting edge of Fintech, innovation and collaboration.”
Darren Foulds, Managing Director of Mobile Payments, Barclays said, “We have been innovating in the mobile space for many years and we’re delighted to announce another pioneering move: Pingit users will be the first in the UK to take advantage of Pay by Bank app payments. Our customers have taken to mobile banking in their millions. We’re now able to build on the success of Pingit and meet the growing demand from our customers to use their mobiles to pay for goods and services swiftly and securely. We expect to see rapid take up of Pay by Bank app payments.”
Barclays has a long track record of innovation in mobile payments. In February 2012 it launched its mobile banking app as well as the UK’s first person-to-person mobile payment app, Pingit, letting Barclays and non-Barclays customers send money to friends and family, pay bills and donate to charity. These apps have been downloaded more than 5 million times, and are being accessed millions of times each week, with more than £4bn in payments and transfers.
