Mastercard Launches Contactless Payments Via SBI Card App

Mastercard and SBI Cards and Payment Services have jointly launched contactless payments on SBI Card app that will allow SBI Card Mastercard cardholders to make tap-and-go payments at retail outlets.

As per Mastercard's press release, this is the first-ever app of a credit card issuer in India to use Mastercard's tokenisation platform, Mastercard Digital Enablement Service (MDES), that allows payment credentials to be securely tokenised and stored in mobile devices.

"With this service in place, SBI Card Mastercard cardholders need not carry physical cards and can transact at any contactless point of sale terminal using their mobile. So, the cardholders enjoy the benefit of paying up to Rs 2,000 with just a tap on their mobile and for payments above Rs 2,000 they will need to enter their Card PIN on the terminal," it said.

Tokenisation feature ensures that the customer's actual card details are not shared with the merchant.

SBI Card Mastercard cardholders will have to do a one-time registration of their card on the latest version of their mobile app, the press release said. After registration, they can complete payments simply by unlocking their phone screen and bringing the mobile near the contactless PoS terminal.