Splitting the bill just got easier for Samsung Wallet users. Soon, they’ll be able to send money by simply tapping their phones.
After building the functionality with Visa and Mastercard, Samsung will roll out a tap-to-transfer feature for U.S. users in the coming weeks. It will enable users to transfer money from a debit card in their Samsung Wallet to a card stored on the recipient’s device—even if that card is held in competing digital wallets from Apple and Google.
Because the transfers utilize NFC technology, Samsung Wallet users will also be able to send funds to a physical debit card that supports tap-to-pay.
Repaying the Coach
Contactless P2P payments can eliminate many of the traditional pain points associated with third-party payment platforms like Venmo or Cash App.
For instance, if a group of parents wanted to reimburse a coach for ordering a team trophy, they would all need to have accounts on the same payment app. Then, they’d have to find the coach within the app and verify their identity. Tap-to-transfer technology streamlines the process by enabling cross-platform transactions and automatically verifying the recipient when a phone or card is tapped.
Additionally, Samsung noted that physical proximity isn’t always required. Samsung Wallet users will be able to search for others on the platform by phone number and still send them a peer-to-peer (P2P) payment.
Including the Spectrum
The addition of P2P payments puts Samsung Wallet in competition with well-established firms like PayPal and Block. This may prove difficult, as the digital wallet has already struggled to gain market share in a U.S. market dominated by Apple Pay and Google Pay.
However, the added functionality of Samsung Wallet reflects a growing trend in which digital wallets aim to support a broad spectrum of payment options, from BNPL to stablecoins.
An increasing number of companies are also vying to become the digital wallet of choice. In a reversal of Samsung’s strategy, PayPal—a company known for its P2P platforms—recently announced it was launching a digital wallet of its own to capture more in-store payments.
