The world of finance and technology is constantly evolving, and traditional institutions have to play catch-up in this game to stay relevant. Contactless payments have been touted as one of the most revolutionary financial innovations of the past decade, and many consumers are eager to be part of this experience. An upcoming test by BNP Paribas will experiment with contactless payment displays.
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Are Contactless Payments Removing The Social Experience of Shopping?
Despite the appeal of contactless payments, this level of innovation in the financial sector slowly removes any human interaction from the shopping experience. Rather than chatting with the cashier while making the payment itself, consumers will soon be able to complete the checkout process themselves in a contactless manner.
However, the upcoming test scheduled by BNP Paribas will not take things that far just yet. As part of their partnership with Think&Go, the plan is to roll out contactless payment displays, enabling consumers to make donations or complete impulse purchases. What makes this concept even more interesting is how the test will be conducted in public spaces, including transit hubs and shopping centres.
Some people may start to feel as if we are transitioning into a world of sci-fi technology, where everyone can buy anything they want in any given location. As the card owner’s information is transmitted during a contactless payment, these displays will be able to get a delivery address from the transaction itself. In a way, this brings a new level of privacy protection to the shopping experience.
To ensure this test by BNP Paribas runs smoothly, the touchscreens will be designed to process transactions in the blink of an eye. Among the potential use cases for this test are options to obtain coupons or book hotels and flights by using their mobile phone or NFC-enabled bank card.
The confirmed test site will be 2Opéra in Paris, France, where customers will be able to make donations to their preferred charity. The contactless display will then process the donation as soon as a consumer puts their NFC-enabled bank card or smart device on the screen itself. It will be interesting to see how this concept plays out, as it could open a lot of new opportunities for m-commerce.
Opportunities for Bitcoin Payments To Evolve
Bitcoin has been a contactless payment method for quite some time now, but it has not yet been embraced on a global scale. The upcoming contactless display test by BNP Paribas opens up a few opportunities for Bitcoin payments as well. Imagine a world where you would see an ad on a major screen, and an option to buy it with Bitcoin?
This field test could be exactly what Bitcoin needs to gain mainstream adoption over the next few years. Very few mainstream consumers are aware of Bitcoin as a payment method, yet if it were to be an available payment method on contactless displays, that situation would change rather quickly. It will be interesting to see whether or not this idea becomes a reality someday.
What are your thoughts on the concept of contactless payment displays? Will it be beneficial for Bitcoin in the long run? Let us know in the comments below!
Partial Source: Finextra
Images courtesy of Shutterstock, BNP Paribas