Vodafone has revealed that users of its Vodafone Wallet m-payment service will be able to make contactless MasterCard payments in several European markets within weeks.
Customers activate the service by adding their MasterCard number to the Vodafone Wallet app. In order to work, customers must have a Vodafone NFC SIM card and a compatible smartphone. Today, Vodafone Wallet is compatible with 60 Android handsets.
Payments are automatically charged to the selected card; higher-value transactions require a four-digit PIN.
In addition, customers can also use the app to check their balance and review recent activity.
"With their MasterCard cards enabled in the Vodafone Wallet, consumers will be able to pay in a contactless manner at more than 3 million retail locations," said David Dechamps, head of emerging payments, Europe, at MasterCard, in a statement on Monday.
Vodafone Wallet is currently available in six countries: Germany, Hungary, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain, and the U.K.
Vodafone struck a similar deal with MasterCard rival Visa in March, but despite announcing Visa-based payments would be available in Europe during the second quarter of 2015, it has yet to launch.
A spokesman for the telco told Total Telecom that, similarly to MasterCard customers, Visa card holders will also be able to make NFC payments via Vodafone Wallet "in the next few weeks".
For now then, Vodafone Wallet users who want to make contactless payments will have to continue to rely on the operator’s SmartPass service, a prepaid service that requires customers to add credit to their account before they can pay for goods or services up to the value of £30.
