SBI Card Pay, a payment feature which allows customers to create virtual version of their physical SBI Credit Card on their mobile phones is now available on Mastercard platform.
To avail this service, customers with an Android smartphone have to register their SBI Credit Card on the SBI Card mobile application. This creates a virtual card on their mobile phone for their physical credit card.
Thereafter, customers can make payments at merchants simply by unlocking their mobile phone screen using fingerprints, the screen lock facility or an MPIN and tapping the phone at a Near-Field-Communication (NFC) POS. This simple ‘tap and pay’ contactless process makes the card payments swifter, hygienic and more seamless for customers.
Mastercard Digital Enablement Service (MDES) will allow payment credentials to be securely tokenized and stored in mobile devices. Mastercard is constantly enabling different form factors for consumers to choose from. SBI Card Pay is powered by Comviva’s HCE Module from its mobiquity® Banking Suite, that leverages Host Card Emulation (HCE) technology and tokenization to deliver swift, seamless, secure and convenient contactless mobile payments to customers. Tokenization converts a customer’s card information into a device-specific digital token.
Mr. Rama Mohan Rao Amara, MD & CEO, SBI Card said, “SBI Card Pay has redefined the payment experience for our customers. The ‘Tap and Pay’ contactless experience is not just fast, secure and convenient, but also very relevant in Covid era from a safety perspective as customers simply need to tap their mobile phone on NFC enabled POS terminals to make payments. We are happy to extend SBI Card Pay feature on Mastercard platform too. We believe that contactless payments will continue to play a key role in country’s digital payments drive and as the supporting infrastructure increases countrywide, adoption is bound to accelerate significantly.”
Vikas Varma, Chief Operating Officer, South Asia, Mastercard said, “Safety and security combined with quick and convenient payment experience, is at the core of growing India’s digital economy. Mastercard is happy to partner with SBI Card and Comviva to bring the benefits of ‘Tap and Pay’ contactless payments to Indian consumers. These ‘tap and pay’ payments are secure, seamless, and more importantly are safe in time of COVID-19 pandemic. Mastercard is confident that the service will offer a better mobile payment experience for SBI Card cardholders. It will also encourage contactless payments, especially in a time when people prefer touch-free transactions in a safe and secure manner. With this new launch, Mastercard is strengthening the long-standing partnership with India’s largest pure play credit card issuer.”
Srinivas Nidugondi, COO and EVP, Digital Financial Solutions at Comviva said, “Globally HCE and tokenization are making card payments frictionless and secure, and we believe that in India also they will redefine the card payment experience and bring it on par with the developed world. With the growing NFC POS infrastructure in India and mobile phones becoming de facto wallets for consumers, we expect ‘tap and pay’ services like SBI Card Pay are the future of card payments in India. The inclusion of SBI Cards on Mastercard platform will help to grow the usage of this service in the country.”