Weve, MasterCard Partner in U.K. to Push NFC Mobile Payments Forward (Feb. 6, 2014)
MasterCard has joined forces with Weve, the mobile payments joint venture from the U.K.’s three largest mobile telecom providers, to accelerate adoption of NFC mobile payments. Under terms of the partnership, MasterCard will provide technology and integration services to banks and financial institutions that offer the Weve platform to their customers. MasterCard’s experience partnering with FIs across the globe will enable simple, fast and secure adoption of Weve by interested banks, the companies said.
“MasterCard’s vision of a world beyond cash maps neatly onto our own vision of a world powered by mobile,” said David Sear, Weve CEO. “Its existing relationships with the banks, in addition to its own experience of the mobile payments world, make it an ideal partner for Weve.” Sear said bringing MasterCard onboard reduces complexity of adoption and facilitates ease of access—removing two of the biggest current barriers to mobile payments. The U.K. has been among the leading contactless payment adopters, with more than 300,000 retail outlets now accepting contactless payments, according to Weve.
Weve, which debuted in October 2012, is a joint venture between mobile operators Vodafone UK, Telefónica UK’s O2 and EE. The trio initially joined forces under the name Project Oscar in 2011.
Vodafone, in partnership with Visa, began rolling out its mobile wallet across Europe last fall.
