Irish-owned retail and wholesale company BWG Foods, which operates the Spar, Eurospar, Mace and XL brands, is to become one of first in Ireland to introduce contactless payments for customers. In partnership with Visa Europe, BWG will begin accepting contactless payments from the end of April. The company plans to expand the service across its 900 stores during 2012.
Contactless payments use near field communication (NFC) technology that removes the need to swipe credit cards or use a chip reader in favour of placing a compatible card against a receiver, similar to smart cards used in public transport. NFC chips have also found their way into smartphones via services like Google Wallet.
Willie O’Byrne, BWG Foods managing director said: "The adoption of this technology across our retail estate, spanning approximately 900 stores in Ireland, will provide an additional layer of convenience for our 1 million daily shoppers. We are constantly evolving our offer and service to customers and we see this as the next evolution of the shopping experience in an increasingly cashless society."
Conor Langford, vice president Ireland, Visa Europe, said: "The increase in contactless acceptance, led by organisations like BWG, has set the scene for a major change in the way we pay in Ireland. The growing contactless infrastructure across Ireland also paves the way for the introduction of mobile payments in the years to come. We’re excited to be working with innovative partners like BWG to make the future of payments a reality."
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