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Chicago-based BMO Harris Bank on Monday unveiled a mobile app for cardless ATM cash withdrawals and claimed it has the nation’s largest network of ATMs configured for smart-phone-based withdrawals. Meanwhile, ATM manufacturer Diebold Inc. said it bought a Canadian software company as part of a strategy to offer more software-based services.
BMO Harris Bank, the U.S. affiliate of BMO Financial Group (Bank of Montreal), said 750 of its ATMs currently can perform cardless cash withdrawals using its new Mobile Cash app, and another 150 will be ready in June. “With the launch, BMO Harris now has the largest network of cardless-enabled ATMs in the country,” the bank said in a news release.
“Smart phones are quickly becoming the singular device that people use to help manage their life,” said Connie Stefankiewicz, head of North American channel strategy and solutions at BMO Financial Group, said in the release. “BMO Harris is continuing to invest significantly in technology that is designed to address consumers’ evolving preferences.”
The mobile app uses QR codes to allow cardholders to make cash withdrawals without inserting their debit cards into the ATM. The app will speed up transaction times and does not store customer account information, the bank said.
The app uses technology from white-label mobile-payments and banking platform developer Paydiant Inc. and comes to BMO Harris Bank via Paydiant’s partnership with payment processor Fidelity National Information Services Inc. (FIS). Other banks that use Paydiant’s technology for mobile cash withdrawals include Wintrust Financial Corp. and City National Bank in Los Angeles.
To use the feature, the customer logs in to her mobile-banking app to request the withdrawal amount. The application sends a token to the user’s device linking the user, her account number, and the requested transaction. Later, at one of her bank’s ATMs, the user pushes a “mobile” button on the ATM screen and scans the QR code displayed on the screen to identify herself and trigger cash dispensing via an encrypted connection to a cloud server.
PayPal Inc. announced March 2 that it has a deal to buy Newton, Mass.-based Paydiant.
Also today, North Canton, Ohio-based Diebold reported that it acquired Phoenix Interactive Design Inc., a London, Ontario-based developer of software for ATMs and other financial self-service applications. Diebold chief executive Andy W. Mattes said in a statement that the acquisition “is an important milestone in our drive to transform to a services-led, software enabled company.”
Phoenix Interactive Design has 200 employees. Its customers include Fifth Third Bank, TD Canada Trust and National Australia Bank Group. The 28-year-old company’s Windows-based applications have a consistent, user-friendly interface and works on multiple hardware platforms.
The purchase price was not immediately disclosed. Alan Kerr, Diebold’s executive vice president of software, will lead the Phoenix operation, which will serve as the foundation of Diebold’s software business moving forward. Kyle MacDonald, Phoenix’s founder and chief executive, will retire but assist during the transition. “I am confident that Diebold will bring tremendous growth opportunities for the Phoenix team, and will add impressive value to Phoenix’s clients,” MacDonald said in a statement.
