In early 2015 Samsung acquired LoopPay, LoopPay’s technology was then used in Samsung’s roll out of Samsung Pay. LoopPay is different to other contactless payment solutions because it doesn’t use near field communication that requires upgraded payment terminals. Instead it relies on Magnetic Secure Transmission (MST), this means almost any payment terminal that accepts magnetic stripes (e.g the ones you find on credit & debit cards) can be used and no costly payment terminal upgrade is necessary.
Today Bank of America & Samsung have announced a partnership and will launch a pilot program where some Bank of America customers can use LoopPay. Basically it’s a small device that connects to your phone, you can then add your Bank of America Visa cards and use them from there. You can also attach it to your keys and use your phone to locate the LoopPay device and disable/enable cards within the app. (Note: This is a pilot program that you have to be invited to join)
Hat tip to reader SCJ
