US Single Migration Project Urged for EMV and NFC Standards
The global payments industry is facing a revolution, as mobility becomes a standard and consumers are looking for payment solutions available ‘anywhere’ at ‘anytime’, according to US business research and consulting firm Frost & Sullivan.
With the worldwide Europay, MasterCard and Visa (EMV) standard implemented in most countries, the global interoperability of card payments has become less of a concern. However, the US is still in the preparation stage for EMV migration. The firm suggests that while the US can learn from different markets that have already deployed the technology, stakeholders can also benefit financially by making a single investment that would result in the delivery of a combined EMV and near field communication (NFC) payment environment.
The firm’s recent whitepaper, ‘Managing the Migration to EMV and NFC Payment Technology – How to Ensure the Successful and Efficient Market Deployment of a Product’, offers US payment card issuers and acquirers insight into the EMV standards landscape. Its issue follows announcements from US payment systems in 2011 on their commitment to accelerate EMV adoption, and the paper also explains how this infrastructure can support next generation payment solutions such as NFC.
“The EMV secure-chip standard forms the basis for the payment infrastructure across Europe, Canada, and many countries within the Asia-Pacific region,” said Frost & Sullivan global programme manager smart cards, Jean-Noel Georges. “In countries where EMV is still in its infancy, such as the US, financial institutions can benefit from the adherence to EMV as a means to ensure a globally interoperable payment solution.
“To start deploying EMV-compliant and NFC-enabled products however, card issuers should have a strategy in place. EMV migration needs to be fully prepared, planned and defined. There is no doubt that the great impact during EMV migration is on the issuer who has to modify the back office system, the authorisation system, as well as the customer service.”