MBNA announces massive roll out of contactless payment cards in UK
01 November, 2010
category: Contactless
MBNA, a European subsidiary of Bank of America, has begun a two-year program to roll out contactless credit cards for its millions of UK customers.
According to the MBNA, 5 million of the company’s cards will have contactless technology by the end of 2011, adding to the existing 10 million contactless credit and debit cards already in the UK market.
According to MBNA, customers do not need to do anything to receive the new cards, as they will be automatically updated and distributed upon reissue.
Additionally, MBNA says the cards will feature several new layers of security. For example contactless cards cannot be used until a PIN is entered on first use, payments are limited to up to £15 per transaction, and customers will occasionally be asked to enter their PIN number to ensure the transactions are valid.
According to MBNA, adoption of contactless payment among UK businesses is gathering pace, with Subway, Pret a Manger, Caffe Nero and others already installing terminals. In addition, a host of big-name retailers are either trialing the technology or rolling it out, including the Co-op, Boots, Spar, National Trust gift shops and Little Chef restaurants.