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Topic: Digital

Powering seamless and secure connections for customers. Always.

Posted on by Marketing Team

For over 60 years Cuscal has been empowering seamless and secure connections for customers, providing banks, mutuals and credit unions, payment service providers and enterprise clients with wholesale connectivity services to Australia’s entire payment ecosystem.

Discover the role Cuscal plays in enabling access to Australia’s card payments network and how we ensure the safe, secure and seamless processing of retail card payments for our clients and their customers.

Contact us to discuss your payment requirements and how we can help your business.

P&N Bank Digital Card Issuance

Posted on by Marketing Team

P&N Bank, the largest locally owned and operated bank in Western Australia, and Cuscal worked in partnership on an Australian-first innovation with the instant Digital Card Issuance API, delivering a seamless digital customer experience for new and existing customers.

Watch the video for more on how P&N Bank, Data Action and Cuscal collaborated to deliver this customer-focus solution.

Teachers Mutual Bank Limited mobile banking

Posted on by Marketing Team

Teachers Mutual Bank Limited is dedicated to giving its members a great customer experience. So when it decided to revamp the mobile banking apps for its three brands it wanted to make sure that the new apps allowed its members to perform all their main banking needs in a simple and intuitive way.

We partnered with the team at Teachers Mutual Bank Limited to adapt our white-label mobile banking solution for its members’ particular needs. We then worked closely with the team at Teachers all the way through the development and implementation process to ensure a smooth launch and a great experience for members of Teachers Mutual Bank, UniBank and Firefighters Mutual Bank.

Watch the video for more on how Teachers Mutual Bank Limited and Cuscal are putting key banking functions in the hands of members to deliver a positive member experience.

P&N Bank launches instant digital cards

Posted on by Uberbrand

People using mobile phones

P&N Bank is Cuscal’s first client to launch instant digital cards, using the Cuscal Virtual Card API set. The APIs allow companies to provide their customers with new or replacement digital cards into their mobile wallet within seconds. Without a digital version of the card, customers can be without access to their money for days or even weeks.

Cuscal’s Virtual Card APIs are the most comprehensive instant card issuance solution in Australia. No other financial institution in Australia currently provides instant card issuance for new and replacement cards and gives its customers access to the full virtual card to allow online payments.

Instant access to the full card number is particularly useful as it not only allows customers to pay for things in person, but also buy things online. This is particularly useful for customers who are travelling and their cards are lost or stolen. They can simply log into their mobile banking application or internet banking, order a new card and continue their holiday uninterrupted.

Cuscal Head of EFT, Acquiring and Digital Lauren McCormack said Cuscal was thrilled to have been able to help P&N Bank deliver this great advancement to its mobile and digital banking capability.

“We see it as a real win-win for both P&N and its customers, saving time and money for everyone involved. We also hope that it will help P&N Bank customers get access to their money more quickly and easily in those awful, stressful situations we all find ourselves in when our cards are lost or stolen,” she said.

Not only does instant card issuance have great customer benefits, it is also very useful for financial institutions and other companies that issue cards. They can save money by not needing to physically mail out PINs to their customers and also start earning revenue sooner by giving customers quicker access to their money. In the future, companies may decide to save even more money by not issuing physical cards at all.

Financial institutions and their customers can realise even greater benefits if they combine Cuscal’s Virtual Card API with the Card Control API. Financial institutions can decide to enable controls on a card (eg restricting spend for instore/contactless payments) until the physical card has arrived with the customer. This reduces the chance of someone intercepting a card while in the mail and then being able to make fraudulent payments.

Cuscal’s solution currently works for Visa and eftpos credit, debit and prepaid cards. Cards can be ‘provisioned’ (enabled in a mobile wallet) to Apple Pay, Google Pay and Samsung Pay. The solution also works for any cards making payments via eftpos and Visa, companies do not need to be current clients of Cuscal to make use of the API’s capabilities.

Everyone wins when you enhance a banking app

Posted on by Uberbrand

People using their phone while waiting for a train
Times have changed. It’s now normal for consumers to buy their groceries, clothes and travel, read news, socialise and research major purchases via their phones. Even essential government services like Centrelink and Medicare are encouraging their customers to use their digital channels rather than face-to-face contact. Financial institutions must also provide opportunities for customers to complete more of their banking via digital channels.

A recent McKinsey and Company report[i] shows that customers across Asia – including Australia – have made a clear shift to digital banking in line with smartphone usage.

Mobile banking is now the preferred option for standard banking transactions such as checking account balances and paying bills. The report highlighted that deep digital engagement with customers can generate considerable value for banks: digitally active customers are stickier – they purchase 1.6 products per year, compared to 0.5 on average for non-digital customers; and active digital customers also own 1.5 times more banking products than their non-digital peers.

Enabling digital engagement at the front-end, where consumers interact with their bank’s services, is a crucial part of developing digitally active customers. Banking apps that are easy to navigate and rich in features provide a myriad of benefits to customers – and ultimately to financial institutions too.

Driving engagement with card and PIN controls

You can improve the richness of your existing digital channels, like banking apps, by introducing new functionality. This can increase your customers’ ability to self-service, encouraging ongoing, regular use of your banking services and improving their loyalty to your brand.

For a customer managing their banking, the ability to manage their card PIN through their banking app – rather than having to make time to visit the branch – is a perfect example of how a banking app which is rich in functionality can better meet customers’ needs. Indeed, for a customer with a crisis out of hours where they need money and have forgotten their PIN, the ability to take control and solve the problem themselves, using their banking app, can be an instant stress reliever.

Implementing enhanced card controls within a banking app is another great way to engage customers by giving them the tangible benefit of real-time management of their cards. Allowing customers to turn certain transaction types on and off with a swipe of their finger, or activate limit-based transaction blocks, creates both financially savvy and digitally engaged customers.

Enabling or disabling contactless payments, switching online or card not present transactions on and off, activating or de-activating ATM transactions (for domestic or overseas transactions) are all examples of everyday interactions banks can create for customers within their banking app. Some customers are asking for further controls, such as setting blocks on merchant categories and being notified when transactions are approved or declined.

Benefits for financial institutions

There is benefit for banks in moving functionality into online or digital channels.

Empowering customers to self-serve helps to lower cost-to-service metrics and enables customer service staff to focus on other priorities and higher value transactions.

Using a banking app as a delivery channel can help solve pain points for both customers and financial institutions. A good example of this is the emergence of virtual card capabilities, to support instant card issuance. This technology allows a financial institution to digitally issue a card to a customer via their banking app or internet banking platform. The customer receives their digital card almost immediately after the order is processed. They can set their PIN, activate the card and use it online straight away. The card can also be provisioned to a digital wallet such as Apple Pay, Google Pay, Samsung Pay or a wearable like Fitbit Pay or Garmin Pay, and be used straight away, anywhere contactless transactions are accepted. No more waiting for several days for the plastic card to arrive before you can start spending.

Instant card issuance is a win for both institutions and customers. The financial institution earns transaction revenue sooner than with the traditional card and PIN ordering process, and saves money because plastic cards and PINs don’t need to be created or sent to customers. Cardholders benefit as they no longer need to worry about their PIN falling into the wrong hands, or wait for their card to arrive before spending in stores or online.

Your best friend when disaster strikes

Digitally issued cards also go a long way to solving the lost card problem – because there isn’t a card to lose! And a virtual card on the phone, even if it is lost, is protected by the phone’s security.

And finally, if a customer loses their physical card – especially if they are travelling – being able to issue a virtual card instantly means that the customer isn’t stranded. It’s conceivable that they could lose their plastic card at breakfast on their last day, login to the app, cancel the old card and set up a new virtual card on their phone in time to check out of their hotel and go to the airport.

Without instant card issuance, the customer could have been stranded for days, or even a week.

At Cuscal, we are collaborating with our clients to help them offer engaging and innovative banking experiences to their customers. Our current suite of products is designed to promote efficiencies in banking operations and create self-service opportunities for cardholders. Our API suite includes enhanced card control APIs, PIN management APIs (including PIN change and PIN set functionality) and a virtual card set to facilitate instant card issuance.

These are dynamic times for financial institutions and we are excited to be assisting our clients to develop solutions that support a more digital way of banking.

By Lauren McCormack, Head of EFT, Acquiring and Digital

[i] Sonia Barquin, Viniyak, HV, Duhita Shrikhande, Asia’s digital banking race: giving customers what they want, McKinsey & Company, Global Banking Practice, April 2018

Aussies want to pay with their phones

Posted on by Uberbrand

A person paying a merchant with their phone

In the highly competitive environment of consumer banking, finding comparative advantage over major players is a rare opportunity. However, recent research by Telsyte shows clearly that the reluctance of major banks to adopt digital wallets such as Apple Pay, Google Pay (formerly Android Pay) and Samsung Pay has created an opportunity for those institutions who have led the way in offering their customers more choice in the way they pay.

Aussies will move banks to pay with their phones or wearables
Recent research shows that mobile and wearable payment solutions like Apple Pay, Google Pay and Samsung Pay are increasingly influencing consumers’ choice of financial institutions.

The Telsyte study found that around one in five (22 per cent) iPhone users claim they are more likely to bank with a provider if it supports Apple Pay. This figure increases to 32 per cent for those who are also using an Apple Watch. This research shows a clear opportunity for financial institutions to differentiate from the major banks to acquire new customers – particularly those using Apple devices.

Mobile payments are growing in Australia
Although the number of payments made by mobile devices is still comparatively small, the use of mobile payments is growing quickly year on year. The RBA reported in its 2017 Consumer Report that only 2% of consumers had used a smartphone, watch or band to make a payment. This figure has grown exponentially to 14%, according to Telsyte’s study in 2018. This could be due to increasing understanding amongst consumers that mobile payments are more secure than Tap & Pay cards, which I discussed in my recent article on digital wallet security.

Other key takeaways from Telsyte’s research that have implications for financial institutions that are considering offering mobile payments to their customers include:

  • Smartphone sales were up 11% year on year, 9.2 million units sold in 2017
  • There are 19.3 million smartphones in circulation in Australia
  • Android/Google based smartphones made up 55% market share, Apple with 45%
  • Growing price is being driven by need for greater internal storage (supporting greater capabilities and use)
  • 85% of consumers replace an Apple iPhone with another iPhone, Samsung at 70%
  • For the first time, more smartwatches were sold than smart bands in 2017 (58% v 42%)
  • Apple watches lead the smart wrist wearables market in Australia, with now over 1 million Apple smartwatches in the country. FitBit were the leader in smart band devices

We were an early partner and adopter of mobile payment solutions, offering Apple Pay, Google Pay and Samsung Pay to our clients. At Cuscal we support over 41 financial institutions offering Apple Pay, Google Pay and/or Samsung Pay to their customers.

By Trent Gunthorpe, Head of EFT, Acquiring and Digital

Apple Pay coming to eftpos for Cuscal sponsored FIs

Posted on by Uberbrand

apple pay is now available for eftpos cardholders

Sydney, 6 February 2018: eftpos, Australia’s own debit payments network, today announced eftpos-only cardholders from six Cuscal sponsored financial institutions can now use Apple Pay, which is transforming mobile payments with an easy, secure and private way to pay that’s fast and convenient.

eftpos Acting CEO, Mr Paul Jennings, said that leading independent payments company Cuscal has worked with eftpos to enable six financial institutions to launch eftpos for Apple Pay today, offering their eftpos cardholders the choice of using Apple Pay with eftpos.

The Cuscal sponsored financial institutions include CUA, FCCS, Nexus Mutual, People’s Choice Credit Union, SCU More Generous Banking, and Woolworths Employees’ Credit Union.

Mr Jennings said Apple Pay with eftpos will provide eligible eftpos cardholders with the ability to make eftpos purchases on their iPhone or Apple Watch using their own money, processed in real time.

Security and privacy is at the core of Apple Pay. When you use an eftpos card from participating financial institutions with Apple Pay, the actual card numbers are not stored on the device, nor on Apple servers. Instead, a unique Device Account Number is assigned, encrypted and securely stored in the Secure Element on your device. Each transaction is authorised with a one-time unique dynamic security code.

“Today marks another significant milestone for eftpos as we enable more consumers with an iPhone or Apple Watch to choose eftpos to make a transaction from their CHQ or SAV account,” Mr Jennings said. “As Australia’s most used debit card network, we are thrilled to provide consumers from these participating financial institutions with more payment choice, with added benefits of enhanced security and convenience.”

In stores, Apple Pay works with iPhone SE, iPhone 6 and later, and Apple Watch. To set up Apple Pay, cardholders from participating banks and credit unions simply need to open the Apple Wallet app in iOS 11 and follow the prompts.

Cuscal’s General Manager Product and Service, Robert Bell said: “Tens of thousands of eftpos cardholders can now pay with their iPhones, providing greater choice for our clients’ customers. We provide leading digital payment solutions to our clients, helping them to compete on a more level playing field with the big banks.”

For more information on Apple Pay, visit: http://www.apple.com/au/apple-pay/

This press release was originally published by eftpos.

About eftpos
eftpos is the most widely used debit card system in Australia, accounting about 2 billion CHQ and SAV transactions in 2017 worth more than $130 billion. For more information on eftpos, please visit: www.eftposaustralia.com.au

About Cuscal
Cuscal is Australia’s leading independent provider of payment solutions including card and acquiring products, mobile payments, NPP, fraud prevention, EFT switching and direct entry. We process 14% of Australia’s EFT transactions, have over 7.5 million cards under management and switch and acquire for around 35% of Australia’s ATMs. W: www.cuscal.com/ L: www.linkedin.com/company/cuscal

Media inquiries:

Warwick Ponder, eftpos
0408 410 593
WPonder@eftposaustralia.com.au

Jo Savill, Cuscal
0447555018
jsavill@cuscal.com.au

Smartphones – high security digital wallets

Posted on by Uberbrand

Customer paying with a digital wallet on a smartphone

When it comes to purchase convenience and security, Tap & Pay cards are the current leaders. But it is becoming clear that digital wallets are in the running to replace them. It is no longer a matter of “if” but “when”, with today’s announcement that eftpos cardholders can now use Apple Pay, adding to the suite of card schemes available on digital wallets. In addition to the convenience and ease-of-use benefits of digital wallets, it’s their cutting-edge, multi-layer security that makes them the better and safer option for payments.

However, surveys consistently show that customers are concerned about the safety of digital wallets. This concern arises in part from poor communication on how digital wallets are implemented and how they work. Digital wallets were designed to address the security flaws in cards and create a more secure payment method. They are safer than cards, by design, and their security starts with the smartphone.

The multi-layer security of the digital wallet
The security advantage digital wallets have over cards begins with their access to the computing power and features of the smartphone, including specialised security hardware for protecting personal information. This gives the digital wallet app secure storage for payment information where other apps or malware cannot access it.

  1. The first layer of security in a digital wallet comes into play when cards are added to the digital wallet app. Cards can be added using the phone’s camera, typing them in, or transferring them directly from some financial institutions’ apps. The app requires that the person adding the cards is verified as the owner of the cards before they can make payments. This may involve a one-time password sent via SMS to the phone or via email, or even a quick chat with customer service.
  2. The second security layer is the customer and how they control access to their phone. That control can be a PIN or pattern passcode, and, on more recent smartphones, biometric verification using their fingerprint, face or eyes. If the phone is lost, no one can use its digital wallet to make purchases without passing verification. However, for ease of use, some digital wallets do allow the customer to make small purchases without unlocking their phone.
  3. The third layer of security is called tokenisation. To increase transaction security, digital wallets do not store card details or share them when a payment is made. Instead, a token is generated when a card is added. This token is transmitted instead of the card details when a payment is made.

The token is a unique number that links the card to the customer’s device and digital wallet. This allows a customer to register the same card on multiple devices and with multiple digital wallet providers. It is generated by the payment infrastructure provider used by the digital wallet. The payment infrastructure provider stores the original account information on a heavily secured system called a Token Vault.

When a transaction is made the token is used by the payment processor to retrieve and verify the original card information from the Token Vault and complete the transfer of funds. The merchant never sees the actual card details and the account information never travels outside of secure networks. An additional benefit of tokenization is if the user loses their phone they do not need to cancel their card, but they do need to lock or remove the card from their digital wallet. Digital wallet providers have online services to do this in the event of a lost phone.

Finally, digital wallets are protected by the same 24/7 computer-based fraud monitoring and zero liability protections as Tap & Pay cards.

More than POS payments
Digital wallet providers are actively expanding the functionality of their apps. Digital wallets can be used to make purchases within apps and for online purchases. Some digital wallets can automatically provide your delivery address as part of an online transaction. The digital wallet may also store loyalty cards, event tickets and boarding passes that can be scanned from the screen of the phone.

As more transaction types are handled by digital wallets their use will continue to grow. With that growth will come a demand for financial institutions to offer their customers access to the digital wallet provider of their choice. Banks that won’t or can’t will lose customers.

Transitioning to digital wallets
Customers are already choosing financial institutions that are compatible with their phone and digital wallet provider. This is a clear signal that the technology is proven and spreading from early adopters to the mainstream. At the same time, the back office technology has been tried and tested. Deploying digital wallet services is now easier than ever.

Today or tomorrow, your customers are going digital. Be there for them. Find out more about our digital solutions.

By Trent Gunthorpe, Head of EFT, Acquiring and Digital

Teachers Mutual Bank rolls out Cuscal mobile app

Posted on by Uberbrand

person using TMB mobile banking app, developed by Cuscal

Sydney, 7 November 2017 – Over 100,000 Teachers Mutual Bank members will be upgrading to a brand new digital platform, provided by Cuscal.

With a focus on member needs, the new Teachers Mutual Bank app will ensure members have convenient and easy access to a host of service features including the capacity to: block/report a lost/stolen card and change card PINs and access to increased security features.

“The new Teachers Mutual Bank mobile app empowers our members, giving them access to a wide range of features now; and provides us with the infrastructure to create innovation in the future,” stated Teachers Mutual Bank Limited’s Chief Sales and Marketing Officer (Acting), Gerard Smith.

“We have already been recognised as a leader in the financial services industry for customer service^. This new app builds on that reputation, giving our members access to banking functions more commonly associated with branch service, than self-service,” said Gerard Smith.

Cuscal worked with Teachers Mutual Bank, including several rounds of customer testing, to ensure that the app met the needs of the bank’s members.

”Cuscal helps financial institutions like Teachers Mutual Bank to compete with larger banks by providing great technology, which their customers really value,” said Cuscal’s Senior Manager Acquiring & Digital Solutions, Valentina Dunoski.

“With the launch of Teachers Mutual Bank’s app, there are now 22 brands using Cuscal’s white-label banking app – a number that has doubled in the past year and continues to grow. We also offer a growing suite of APIs, which financial institutions can plug into, as well as our other products like the New Payments Platform (NPP),” said Valentina Dunoski.

The rollout of the new Teachers Mutual Bank mobile application futureproofs the bank’s digital offering and will provide a platform for further innovation.

“The new app is a great platform, but over the next few years we want to go further. The next stages of our digital initiatives will give us a critical edge in a highly competitive banking market,” stated Gerard Smith.

Teachers Mutual Bank’s new mobile app can be downloaded for Apple devices from the App Store, and for Android devices from the Google Play store.

Media Contact
Jo Savill jsavill@cuscal.com.au 0447555018

*‘World’s Most Ethical Companies’ Award, from Ethisphere Institute. (Awarded, 2016, 2015, 2014)
^ Teachers Mutual Bank led Australia’s Top 15 consumer banks on customer satisfaction rates for Jan-Jun 2017, see Roy Morgan Research

New rediATM Finder app launched today

Posted on by Rachael Shupe

Man smiling using the rediATM Finder app

We are launching a new rediATM Finder app for both Android and iPhone devices today. This app has a new look and feel, is easier to use and has improved filtering and search functionality.

New change PIN ATM finder
A highly desirable new feature of the app is it now allows users to find a rediATM, where they can change their PIN. The app user just needs to belong to a financial institution which is a part of the rediATM network.

The rediATM network is made up of more than 90 financial institutions, of all sizes, including NAB, BOQ, CUA, People’s Choice Credit Union and Suncorp.

rediATM Finder app
The rediATM Finder app is available for free in the App Store and Google Play.

Current users of the rediATM Finder app, will just need to update to the new version of the app.

Disclaimer: 1. There is no fee for the rediATM Finder app, but an Internet connection is required to download the application. 2. Data charges may apply to both the downloading of the application and the use of the application on your mobile device. Check with your relevant service provider for more details.