The payment networks are coming together to work on a standard for speedier EMV transactions.
As part of that effort, MasterCard is making its M/Chip Fast technology “available to all parties” involved, including other payment networks, acquirers, and processors, Chiro Aikat, senior vice president of product delivery, told Bank Innovation.
The smooth adoption is an industry challenge we are trying to solve, and the common pain points bring all of the payments industry together to collaborate. We are solving for consumer perception, as market is migrating. Before, I would just swipe and put my card in the wallet. With EMV you put the card in, leave it there until the authorization is complete. Fast Chip technology will remove some of that perception, as you are able to take the card out quickly, and move the line.
At the end of last month, 68% of all U.S.-issued MasterCard-branded consumer credit cards feature the chip technology, the company said. The adoption of EMV cards has accelerated since merchants became liable for fraud that occurs when EMV-enabled cards are treated as magstripe cards.
MasterCard first announced of the Fast Chip launch last month. “Our solution brings some of the principles successfully implemented for contactless cards and mobile wallets around the world to point-of-sale terminals,” the company said at the time.
The chip cards have so far been successful in decreasing card fraud rates, Aikat said. Fraud at EMV-compliant merchants decreased 39% in January 2016, compared to the year prior.