Seven mobile wallets, acquirers and payment networks, including Diners Club, EZi Wallet, EZ-Link, Liquid Pay, Mastercard, UnionPay International and Wirecard, have formed a consortium to enable interoperable QR payments in Singapore for consumers and merchants.
The consortium will jointly support an interoperable QR framework that allows customers the ease and convenience of paying with their mobile wallets and cards at consortium merchants.
Apart from bilateral arrangements, mobile wallets and acquirers can choose to be supplemented by LiquidNet, an interoperable API platform developed by Liquid Group that is open to debit and credit cards, wallets, telecom providers, payments technology institutions as well as local and international payment apps.
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Mobile payment will also be made easier for participating merchants, as they will be able to accept consortium QR payments on a single merchant system, creating inclusiveness and effectively streamlining merchant on-boarding and support.
"With this partnership, consumers will have more options to make quick, seamless and secure QR code payments via their mobile phones," Deborah Heng, Country Manager, Mastercard Singapore said in a statement.
This initiative by the consortium comes on the heels of the Payments Council's endorsement of the EMVCo compliant SG QR specifications for electronic payments that will see SG QR being adopted and deployed by payment service providers in Singapore through 2018.
SG QR payments via local and international credit cards, debit cards and stored value wallets will be supported, ensuring a seamless and streamlined e-payment experience for both consumers and merchants.
