eWalmart’s assistant treasurer Mike Cook, one of the masterminds of MCX, the consotorium of retailers who recently banned Apple Pay in favour of the upcoming CurrentC, has revealed at a recent payments conference called Money2020 that rejection of Apple’s mobile payments system had little to do with their issues with credit card fees, Re/Code is reporting.
Mr. Cook said that MCX is creating CurrentC mainly to craft a system that combines loyalty offers and a mobile payment system in one. While Apple Pay supports Visa and Mastercard credit cards, Walmart and other MCX retailers believe “it just perpetuates the traditional payments fee structure they despise”. One the other hand, the MCX’s CurrentC app favours transactions funded by store-branded cards or a connection with a customer’s checking account, all of which carry lower fees than credit card purchases.
“MCX’s CEO said at the conference that the app will also launch with some traditional credit cards, though he didn’t say which brands of cards. Don’t expect to see traditional Visa and Mastercard credit cards in CurrentC anytime soon, execs from those two companies indicated to me in an onstage interview at the conference.
When you watch the interaction between Cook, one of the biggest champions of MCX, and Visa’s McCarthy, this should come as no surprise. Nor should the realization that Walmart will never accept Apple Pay, the service that the credit card networks support.”
Check out the following video showing Walmart executives confront Visa over Apple Pay ban:
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Apply Pay? lol
to be honest, having apple pay wouldnt have drawn me into a walmart anywhoo
Is it wrong to assume that if you can afford an iPhone, you probably don’t go to Walmart all that much anyway?
Well, this is the stupidest comment of the day. Walmart isn’t a thrift store.
Lighten up and take a joke.
Actually, with the cost of an iPhone, you kinda have to shop a Wal-smart, lol
#peopleofwalmart
Actually, with the cost of an iPhone, you kinda have to shop at Wal-Mart, lol
Ha!! Nice!
Hahah
When this fails miserably (loyalty programs like this don’t work that often) then they will quietly offer it. But then again, i never go to Walmart anyway, not that I don’t like it or anything its just to out of my way, and I have Target right by my house.
Hahaha how’s that Walmart MasterCard working for them?? It’s not about the fees! Hahaha show me one CEO that doesn’t make decisions without considering all financial factors!!
No way you’re connecting to my bank account.
I find that my thoughts are the opposite of Walmarts. I am repelled by “a system that combines loyalty offers and a mobile payment system in one”. I just don’t like loyalty systems mainly because there are so many and as a MasterCard Customer I get points for one reward system anywhere I shop. And I am also a supporter of MasterCard and Visa, though I understand that business hate the fee system. That’s just one main area where MasterCard and Visa make their money. It will be interesting to see if apple pay puts enough pressure on those companies opposed. I want not only apple pay but NFC and mobile payments to become more mainstream and succeed in general. I believe that Apple pay will plant a needed seed to start larger growth or catching on in this area. We already have a good base for NFC terminals in Canada so it is only a matter of time.