Barclaycard is expanding the number of ways people in the United Kingdom can make contactless payments, by offering more NFC-equipped items. A bPay sticker, along with a key fob and a wristband, will be going on sale in the country soon, allowing customers to make the contactless payments quickly without having to carry an NFC-equipped smartphone or go through prompts in an accompanying smartphone app.
The new items work just like Barclaycard’s existing Paytag, which is a sticker that can be stuck onto the back of a phone or another item, and used in a similar way to contactless credit and debit cards, for purchases up to £20 ($31) in value, £30 ($47) from September, reports CNET. The wristbands are also not completely brand new, as they were first tested out in the UK last year, but this is the first time they are being sold directly to consumers. One major change compared to Paytag is that, while Paytag is only for Barclaycard customers, bPay devices can be used by anyone over the age of 12 with a valid Mastercard or Visa payment card, regardless of the card issuer.
Unlike other payment systems that take payments directly from a nominated account, bPay is a prepaid system. A card is connected to a bPay account and used to top it up whenever funds are spent, up to a user-definable limit. There is a companion app for monitoring its use and adding more funds, as well as for disassociating one of the bPay items if it is lost or stolen.
The bPay sticker, wristband, and key fob will go on sale through the bPay website on July 1 for £15 ($24), £20 ($31), and £25 ($39) respectively, with some retailers stocking it in August.
Despite the usefulness of the system, bPay faces considerable competition from mobile payment platforms, and may have some trouble getting its footing in a potentially busy market. Apple Pay is going to be rolling out in the United Kingdom in July, with Android Pay and Samsung’s own payment’s service also likely to arrive in the country in the following months.
