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Samsung Pay is now being accepted by 19 more credit and debit card issuers, including PNC Bank, KeyBank, California Bank and Trust, and Pentagon Federal Credit Union, allowing customers to expand their use of the mobile payment service for purchases as they shop.
Samsung announced the additional banks and credit unions on Dec. 15 as the company continues to expand its fledgling services to more merchants and financial institutions.
PNC Bank, California Bank and Trust, and Pentagon Federal Credit Union issue Visa cards, while KeyBank issues MasterCard cards.
The other new Visa credit card issuers joining Samsung Pay are TCF Bank, Central Florida Educators Federal Credit Union, Financial Center Federal Credit Union, Greater Kinston Federal Credit Union, Keypoint Credit Union, Numerica Credit Union, Utah Community Credit Union and Amegy Bank National Association.
Other institutions issuing MasterCard cards are Achieva Credit Union, Associated Bank, Bayport Credit Union, Bethpage Federal Credit Union, Cambridge Savings Bank, USC Credit Union and Navy Federal Credit Union.
Cardholders who are customers of these banks and credit unions will be able to use Samsung Pay to pay almost anywhere they can swipe or tap their card.
“More Samsung users will be able to use Samsung Pay to shop this holiday season, thanks to new support from MasterCard and Visa issuers, including our valued partners at PNC Bank and KeyBank,” Injong Rhee, executive vice president of Samsung Electronics and the global head of Samsung Pay, said in a statement. “With the widest acceptance of any mobile payment service, Samsung Pay continues to expand its reach and provide its customers unparalleled choice, flexibility and access.”
The Samsung Pay mobile payment service, which the company launched in the United States on Sept. 28, allows users to pay for purchases using their Samsung smartphones in just about every retail location through its acceptance of multiple payment systems, from near-field communications (NFC) to traditional credit card readers and swiping terminals, according to an earlier eWEEK report.
Samsung Pay also integrates Samsung’s Knox mobile security platform, which uses one-time codes to authenticate purchases rather than transmitting a user’s personal or credit card information. Samsung Pay uses biometric authentication through fingerprint ID and NFC, and can also emulate magnetic-stripe cards for purchases. Samsung Pay only works with Samsung’s latest smartphones.
Samsung Pay entered a market that also includes Apple Pay, Android Pay and other mobile payments services.
In November, LG Electronics announced that it will join the mobile payments platform wars with its own LG Pay service to take on Apple Pay, Android Pay, Chase Pay and Samsung Pay, according to a recent eWEEK story. The company is developing the system with the two largest credit card companies in South Korea, Shinhan Card Co. Ltd. and KB Kookmin Card Co. Ltd. No date has been set for when the new mobile payment service will be available. The LG Pay service will be designed to work on all LG smartphones.
In October, JP Morgan Chase announced it is also jumping into the expanding mobile payment marketplace with a planned Chase Pay service that will launch in mid-2016. The Chase Pay service will allow customers to pay for goods and services in-store, in mobile apps or for online purchases at retailers, including Walmart, Target, Best Buy and Shell. The service will be available to some 94 million Chase credit, debit and prepaid card account holders.
Apple Pay, which has been available since October 2014, lets Apple users make purchases and payments using their late-model iPhones, iPads or Apple Watch devices.