News

Interac and partners demo Canada's first contactless mobile debit scheme

March 27, 2013

ATM and debit network Interac today heralded the first NFC mobile debit transaction to take place in Canada. But more than a first for Canada, the transaction also was among the first in the world to use a domestic debit network, Interac said in a news release.

In addition to Interac, the project involved several other partners: McDonald's Restaurants of Canada, the participating merchant; RBC Royal Bank, the participating FI; Moneris Solutions, the payment service provider; and BlackBerry, the mobile device from Canada's own Research in Motion.

Dubbed Mobile Interac Flash, the NFC venture introduces the first contactless debit payment to the mobile payments space in Canada. The first Interac Flash demonstration took place at a McDonald's restaurant equipped with an Interac Flash POS terminal.

The demo was performed with BlackBerry smart phones equipped with NFC functionality and an Interac Flash app that securely communicated the users' financial information to complete the contactless debit transaction in real time.

The contactless solution gives cardholders the choice to pay for smaller value items securely, quickly and without PIN entry, simply by briefly holding their mobile device in front of an Interac Flash-enabled contactless point-of-sale reader. 

Interac Flash uses EMV technology and Canada's existing chip debit infrastructure, The solution leverages Canadians' trust in the Interac network: cardholders are protected from unauthorized transactions under the InteracZero Liability Policy and merchants continue to receive the benefits of secure and non-refutable transactions associated with PIN-based Interac Debit.

In addition to Interac, McDonald's Restaurants of Canada, and BlackBerry, the NFC partnership includes payment service provider Moneris Solutions, and, as the financial institution, RBC Royal Bank.

Today's demonstration sets the stage for a widespread rollout later this year, the partners said. RBC has announced that it will include all Interac Flash transactions as free debit transactions for personal banking accounts.

"This free mobile debit option will benefit both our clients and our merchants, said Dave McKay, group head of personal and commercial banking at RBC Royal Bank. "RBC clients will be able to use their mobile devices to make debit payments when and where they wish to make them — and then to immediately check their online bank balance from those same devices. We know merchants want fast, secure and low-cost transactions and that is exactly what Interac Flash helps ensure."   

The release did not mention whether or when the Interac Flash app might be available for iOS- and Android-formatted devices.

Read more about contactless/NFC.