Samsung unveils ‘Tap to Pay’ feature for digital wallets

Technology giant Samsung (NASDAQ: SSNLF) is gearing up for the mainstream launch of a new tap-to-pay feature for its digital wallet, designed to change the landscape for digital payments.

According to its official announcement, users of Samsung Wallet will be able to transfer funds to other users by tapping devices. The feature leans on the near-field communication (NFC) feature on Samsung devices to transfer funds, avoiding the hassle of manually obtaining bank account details.

The feature will be unveiled for U.S.-based users in May and will allow users to send funds from debit cards linked to their digital wallets to other third-party apps. With the new functionality, Samsung Wallet users can use the tap-to-pay feature to send funds to Google Wallet (NASDAQ: GOOGL) and Apple Wallet (NASDAQ: AAPL) by tapping devices.

Users can send funds to other Samsung Wallet holders via a phone number search without relying on the tap-to-pay functionality. Using the new NFC-based functionality, Samsung Wallet users can send funds to debit or credit cards that are not assigned to a digital wallet.

“Samsung Wallet is a powerful tool readily available on millions of Galaxy smartphones, and with this update, we’re taking the experience to the next level,” read the company statement.

Apart from its partnership with Visa (NASDAQ: V) and Mastercard (NASDAQ: MA), Samsung Wallet is pushing the frontiers of traditional digital wallets to include data storage. The report notes that Samsung Wallet users can store driver’s licenses, credit cards, gym memberships, student IDs, and loyalty cards.

“Many users want the flexibility to accomplish their most frequent and important tasks on their mobile device,” read the report. “Samsung Wallet will help make payments to friends and family quick and convenient.”

Despite the benefits, the new tap-to-pay feature has an obvious flaw in its design. Samsung’s press release reveals that transfers will be settled within two minutes, depending on the bank, triggering a dire need for instantaneous processing.

Pundits say Samsung can shorten processing times by leaning on stablecoins and digital currencies in its digital wallet offering.

Tap-to-pay digital wallet offerings gather steam

Contactless payment has recorded growing adoption rates recently, with several technology heavyweights rolling out their offerings. Back in April, Google Wallet rolled out its tap-to-pay functionality with parental controls to improve payments for children.

In other news, payment services firm Mastercard has won an antitrust lawsuit against a fintech firm OV Loop, beating allegations of an unfair monopoly over the payments sector.

According to a Reuters report, the court dismissed the case in favor of Mastercard, noting that OV Loop has not proven its case beyond a balance of probabilities. U.S. District Judge Indira Talwani notes that OV Loop failed to prove that Mastercard had an unfair monopoly over the mobile payment landscape.

The lawsuit, filed in 2024, accused Mastercard of denying OV Loop access to digital payments technology required to build out a robust fintech platform. OV Loop alleged that Mastercard’s denial violated the U.S. antitrust regulations, with the lawsuit seeking $75 million in damages.

In the 2024 court filing, OV Loop alleged that Mastercard adopted an unfair process in granting access to vital tokens necessary to create a digital wallet payment platform. OV Loop claimed that Mastercard’s refusal to provide access dented its ability to compete with other digital wallets like Apple Pay, Samsung Wallet, and Google Pay.

As part of its argument, OV Loop notes that it obtained the tokens from Visa, with Mastercard latching onto the disclosure in its defense. Furthermore, Mastercard argues that OV Loop did not present evidence of an “actual refusal” to transact with it.

“OV Loop admits that Mastercard competes with three other payment card networks,” said Mastercard in its defense.

In Talwani’s ruling, OV Loop failed to provide enough evidence to rebut the general rule in antitrust rules. The court held that private businesses can exercise discretion in selecting entities with which they want to transact with.

The case comes on the heels of heightened antitrust supervision by regulators in the payments sector. The Competition Commission of India (CCI) previously launched an inquiry into alleged antitrust violations on its in-app payments following a complaint by a raft of Indian fintech companies.

Outside of finance, antitrust monitoring activity is heating up to a boil with regulators tightening the screws in artificial intelligence (AI) and metaverse industries.

Mastercard zeros in on emerging technology

Fresh off the case against OV Loop, Mastercard is throwing its weight behind embracing emerging technologies to improve the scope of its payment offering. The company has filed for a raft of blockchain tools while onboarding fintech firms to its Web3 solutions.

The payment giant is increasing its bet size with AI, leaning on the technology to crack down on fraud. An AI chatbot is also personalizing shopping experiences for users, while stablecoins is pushing the frontiers for payments.

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