CIBC And Rogers Complete The First Mobile Credit Card Transaction In Canada

Mobile payment launch marks the beginning of a new era in how Canadians pay for everyday purchases

TORONTO, Nov. 2, 2012 /PRNewswire/ - CIBC and Rogers today announced they have completed the first point-of-sale mobile credit card transaction in Canada using the secure SIM card inside an NFC-enabled smartphone. Simon Whitfield, Pan American Games and Olympic medalist, performed the credit card transaction, buying coffee at Tim Hortons using the CIBC Mobile Payment™ App on a BlackBerry® smartphone from Rogers.

This new way to pay will be available to CIBC credit card clients using a Rogers smartphone, allowing them to pay for coffee, groceries, and other everyday purchases simply by holding their smartphone up to one of the tens of thousands of contactless payment terminals at merchants across Canada.

"We're pleased to make history in mobile commerce in Canada by completing the country's first mobile credit card transaction," said David Williamson, Senior Executive Vice-President and Group Head, Retail and Business Banking, CIBC. "Getting a coffee while you are on the go is just one example of the kind of transaction that's going to be made easier when you can pay in just seconds with a CIBC credit card on your smartphone, and we're excited about the possibilities this offers our clients."

"Canadians are amongst the most connected consumers around the world, and we have put Canada on the world stage today as a global leader in mobile commerce," said David Robinson, Vice President of Emerging Business, Rogers Communications. "We are passionate about delivering technology innovations and powering new mobile experiences for our customers," said Robinson. "Making the first mobile credit card payment means that we are one step closer to allowing Canadians to store everything they need, securely, in their smartphone."

The new mobile payments capability from CIBC and Rogers means clients will be able to pay with their CIBC credit card, whether Visa or MasterCard, without retrieving the plastic card from their wallet or purse. They can simply hold their Rogers BlackBerry® smartphone up to a contactless payment terminal and the payment will be automatically charged to their CIBC credit card. The CIBC Mobile Payment App will be accepted at the tens of thousands of Visa payWave™ and MasterCard PayPass™ contactless terminals across Canada and around the world.

As the rollout to clients begins, the new CIBC Mobile Payment App will initially be available on two smartphones on the Rogers wireless network - the BlackBerry® Bold™ 9900 and BlackBerry® Curve™9360, beginning November 16 ^th 2012. As of today, NFC SIM cards required to access the solution on Rogers suretap™ ready devices can be ordered online. Additional suretap-ready devices will support the solution in 2013, including Android and Windows Phone 8 platforms, broadening the offer to more Canadians.

The initiative brought to market by CIBC and Rogers represents the first time a bank and a wireless carrier have joined forces to offer a commercially available mobile payments solution to Canadians that leverages the secure SIM card inside an NFC-enabled device. This new solution aligns to guidelines announced earlier this year by the Canadian Bankers Association for mobile payments in Canada, as well as those developed by respected international associations such as the GSM Association (GSMA), the association of mobile operators and related companies dedicated to standardizing and supporting GSM technology and Global Platform, a cross industry, not-for-profit association focused on secure and interoperable deployment and management of embedded applications on secure chip technology.

Canada is ready for mobile payments

This new mobile payment solution arrives in Canada at a time when smartphone growth is accelerating among Canadians. A recent Harris/Decima poll shows that 44 per cent of Canadians said they now own a smartphone, and within that group, 47 per cent said they are interested in using mobile payments.

"We've seen firsthand how quickly demand can build in other aspects of mobile financial services such as mobile banking, and based on the feedback from our clients we see mobile payments growing rapidly in Canada in the coming years," noted Mr. Williamson.

Forecasts for mobile commerce suggest that it will become a significant method of payment in just the next few years. By 2016, Technology Strategy International forecasts that almost 80 per cent of the smartphones in Canada will be NFC-enabled, and IE Market Research forecasts total mobile payments in Canada will reach $14.2B.

"In a few years, a mobile wallet will be as common as a camera on a smartphone. The opportunity in mobile payments for our business is just getting started - our vision is to take the millions of cards Canadians carry today and to make them instantly accessible and secured on the SIM card of a smartphone," noted Robinson.

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