JP Morgan Chase purchased the remains of MCX, the company that managed the multi-merchant payment app CurrentC before it closed its doors last year. As Banking Tech announced:
Remember CurrentC, the QR-based mobile payment service created by MCX, a consortium of the largest merchants in the US? Yes, the one that was going to be used in major retail stores across the US, while Apple Pay was banned there? The one that ultimately never got off the ground.
Well, the technology behind CurrentC has just been acquired by JPMorgan Chase.
The idea is that MCX technology, which includes a loyalty platform in addition to the ability to execute payments, will be integrated into Chase Pay. This seems to cement Chase Bank’s commitment to QR codes as the means of initiating payments, an alternative to NFC that other payments apps like Apple Pay prefer. The current Chase Pay app also uses QR codes.
Chase Pay is supported by a handful of US retailers at present, Best Buy among them. Walmart, Shell, Phillips 66, and Wakefern will enable Chase Pay as a payment option over the next year or so, the bank says.
The bank says this is its second “fintech announcement for Chase Pay in recent months”.In December 2016, it made an investment in LevelUp, a Boston-based tech company, to bring the “order ahead, pay ahead” experience to customers at quick-service restaurants.
Overview by Sarah Grotta, Director, Debit Advisory Service at Mercator Advisory Group
Read the full story here
