Credit cards have drastically evolved over the last two decades. The swipe method has nearly gone extinct, having been replaced with credit card chips (the insert method) and contactless credit cards (the tap-to-pay method). And with credit card fraud steadily on the rise, the digital transaction landscape is ever-shifting. Now, if you’re a Visa cardholder, you’ll want to listen up because the company has major changes in stores for its customers, some of which go into effect as early as this summer.
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On May 15, Visa announced three key changes coming to debit and credit cards in the U.S., including Visa Flexible Credential, Tap to Everything, and Visa Payment Passkey Service.
Visa’s new features follow other advanced digital payment services like Apple Pay, Zelle, and Venmo and buy now, pay later companies such as Klarna, Afterpay, and Affirm. Similar to these options, Visa seeks to eliminate the need to carry multiple physical cards in your wallet.
“The industry is at a pivotal point—new technologies like Gen AI are rapidly shifting how we shop and manage our finances,” Visa’s chief product and strategy officer, Jack Forestell, said in the press release. “We’re announcing the next generation of truly digital-native payment card experiences. Today we unveiled new card features and digital innovations that will bring consumers into a more customized, convenient and secure future.”
Of the new features, Visa’s Flexible Credential initiative is generating the most buzz. The service will allow card users to “access multiple accounts through a single credential,” explains the San Francisco-based payment card services corporation.
In other words, if you have a Visa debit and credit card with the same financial institution (like Chase, for example), you’ll be issued a combined card that can work as both a debit and credit card. So instead of having two cards in your wallet, you’ll now only have one.
Users will be able to specify which account they’d like the money pulled from. For instance, you can set all gas purchases to go on your credit card or any balance under $50 to be taken out of your checking account (aka, a debit purchase).
The Visa Flexible Credential will have a buy now, pay later option through a partnership with Affirm, which will also let customers pay for purchases with rewards points. The service will officially launch later this summer in the U.S.
As for the Tap to Everything feature, Visa cardholders will now be able to add physical debit and credit cards to their mobile wallets by “tapping” versus scanning. You can also tap person-to-person to send money digitally, and tap a card to your smartphone when purchasing items online. Essentially, “any device can now be a POS device,” per the release.
Additionally, Visa is rolling out its Payment Passkey Service to combat online payment fraud. According to Visa, the service “confirms a consumer’s identity and authorizes online payments with a quick scan of their biometrics like a face or fingerprint.” The corporation explains that biometrics are much more secure than passwords or one-time codes when completing online purchases.
“There is a global desire to find commonality, interoperability and simplicity for online payments. Our passkeys, designed specifically for payments, represent a massive paradigm shift in our industry because it confirms identity without interrupting the checkout experience,” Forestell said in the release. “Visa Payment Passkey Service increases security while reducing friction when you pay online, across any device or website, globally.”
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