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How Australians Make And Take Payments

How Australians Make and Take Payments

The RBA recently published its 2016 Consumer Payments Survey.  Key findings were that survey participants made 37% of their payments with cash (compared to 69% in 2007) and 52% of their payments with a card (compared to 26% in 2007).  This trend is, of course, unsurprising; AusPayNet has been monitoring the shift to digital payments for some time through its Milestones Report.

Ever-changing payment terminals

What is often overlooked though is the commensurate change in the experience at point-of-sale (POS).  Years ago, our experience at POS involved beautiful, old cash registers.  Over time, these were replaced by paper-based card imprinters (known as “click-clack” machines), then by “swipe and sign” machines and chip and PIN card readers, and now by contactless.

With these changes, the security around payments has migrated from physical security (think lock and key), to hardware security, and increasingly to software.

There has been a lot of focus on consumers using virtual cards on mobile phones to make payments – Android Pay, Apple Pay, Samsung Pay etc; we can expect this to be mirrored by merchants using mobile phones to take payments.  Mobile phones have been used by merchants for some time for POS communication, and now pilots are underway around the world that use mobile phones to read payment data.

Standards and security in payments

Security standards, like standards in other areas – Biometrics, Blockchain, Data, – will need to innovate as payments themselves innovate. AusPayNet has a new process for considering non-standard card technologies, to encourage innovation, and to address emerging technologies while limiting the potential for fraud.

Our work on standards will ensure that consumers can continue to make payments – and merchants take payments – in the knowledge that there is appropriate security safeguarding sensitive payment data.  While the mechanisms for payment may be different – mobile and software rather than dedicated POS terminal and hardware – security remains sacrosanct.

To read more on AusPayNet’s device evaluation and approval process and to download the PDF of the IAC Process for Consideration of Non-Standard Technologies, click here.

Our work on standards continues when we participate in Standards Australia’s Digital Transaction Technologies Forum on 29 September 2017. We invite you to follow AusPayNet on Twitter @AusPayNet and LinkedIn for the most up-to-date developments.

Andy White

Andy White

Andy White is the Chief Operating Officer at AusPayNet. Before joining AusPayNet, Mr White spent eight years at ASX in various roles, the last of which involved leading its settlement business, including payments. Prior to starting at ASX, he spent the first five years of his career at the Bank of England and then nine years at LCH.Clearnet.

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