Press

Chase Pay announcement reinforces value and demand for bank – and credit union – branded mobile payments

LOS ANGELES, CA (November 9, 2015) — Consumers have long expressed a preference for a mobile payment function to be offered by their trusted financial institution. No wonder that Chase, the country’s largest card issuer, has been working in parallel with its Apple Pay support to build its own mobile payments offering, linking its merchant acquiring business with its card issuing business. Mobile payment is a natural culmination of optimizing those relationships.

But size isn’t everything. Over one hundred credit unions, large and small, are well underway with their own mobile payment product, CU Wallet, which is already in pilot in several markets.

CU Wallet, open to all credit unions, provides a mobile payment application branded and customized for each credit union, built around a platform shared by 100,000 merchant locations representing $1.2 trillion of US retail spending.

“This announcement by Chase is a timely endorsement of our approach and strategy,” said Paul Fiore, CU Wallet CEO. “Long ago we recognized that mobile is not just a quick and easy alternative to swiping a card. Because of our close relationships with our members and their financial activity and needs, we will provide real value in the way of offers and loyalty incentives to make their lives easier and better. We plan to make shopping more rewarding for our members and their favorite retailers, thus our ongoing work and partnerships with merchants.”

“It’s time for all financial institutions to wake up to the opportunity to better serve their members’ and customers’ financial interests, as well as the risk of others taking that role from them.”

Credit Unions’ mission is very much community-focused. That means not just member consumers, but the small businesses and retailers that make up the community as well. “CU Wallet is committed to creating strong partnerships with our retailers, providing not just better security at lower cost than plastic cards, but a strong, engaged member base, better marketing opportunities and better data to strengthen their merchandising efforts,” Mr. Fiore continued.

About CU Wallet

CU Wallet is a credit union financial services CUSO (Credit Union Service Organization) created to provide credit unions and their members a safe, secure mobile payment delivery solution. The venture, a partnership between successful, experienced technology industry entrepreneurs and innovative and successful credit unions, will be announcing details, including how credit unions can join to participate and help create the future of mobile payment and related solutions.