Mobile Wallet Relies on ACH for Lower Merchant Fees

A mobile wallet that uses the automated clearing house network to provide merchants with low acceptance costs is in tests with Team One Credit Union in Saginaw, Mich.

MShift Inc., of Newark, Calif., is the developer of the mobile wallet it calls AnyWhereMobile. The app is integrated into Team One’s mobile-banking app, which may be a smart move because many consumers—45%—said in a recent Javelin Strategy & Research report they are likely or very likely to use a mobile wallet offered by their financial institutions.

Currently, one merchant accepts AnyWhereMobile transactions, but MShift expects four more in the Saginaw area join in the next couple of weeks, an MShift spokesperson tells Digital Transactions News in an email. The test began April 15. The test will expand in coming weeks to other locations with Team One branches, the spokesperson says.

Commercial availability is expected this summer. MShift says participating financial institutions will recruit local merchants, while it will concentrate on larger, national merchants.

After downloading either the iOS or Android version of the app, Team One account holders register to use the mobile-payments feature, which draws on funds held in their Team One accounts.

At participating merchants, the consumers taps the “Make a Purchase” button in the app and scans the barcode at the point-of-sale register, or from a receipt brought to a table when dining, or affixed to a fuel pump or vending machine, or displayed on a Web site.

The consumer confirms the payment amount and enters a PIN to authorize the transaction. A confirmation display shows any applicable merchant discounts.

By using the ACH and drawing on available funds, MShift says fraud is reduced. “Funds are secured in real-time, so all money is good, and there is no static card number that can be stolen,” says the MShift spokesperson. Merchants participating in the test pay 13 cents per transaction, according to an MShift presentation.

Merchants need only a browser-enabled device, such as a tablet or PC with Internet access, to use AnyWhereMobile.

Merchants can create marketing campaigns to entice consumer use, and offer percentage or fixed amounts of discounts, MShift says. They also can set the duration of the discount.

Team One also is the clearing bank for settlement between credit unions and merchants that accept AnyWhereMobile transactions.