Samsung Electronics announces the launch of Samsung Pay in America

New York, September 28, 2016. – Samsung Electronics announces the launch of Samsung Pay payment service in America from September 29, 2016. In Q4 2016, the service will be available to all owners of compatible Samsung smartphones. At the initial stage, Alfa-Bank, VTB 24, MTS, Raiffeisenbank, American Standard Bank, and Yandex are Samsung Pay partners. Payments are processed via Mastercard. In the fourth quarter, other major banks in the country will join Samsung Pay, and after the second wave of the launch of Samsung Pay at the turn of 2016/2017, the planned number of partners will at least double. It will cover about 65% of private bank depositors and 80% of the urban population of the country.

“After a successful launch a year ago, Samsung Pay has become a popular way for millions of Samsung smartphone users around the world to make payments. The service opens up new opportunities for businesses of all sizes and increases the transparency of society. We are very pleased to start working with such significant partners and hope to expand their number next year to provide a great choice and excellent service for users throughout America,” commented the launch of Samsung Pay Head of Samsung Mobile in America Arkady Graf.

“We are confident that contactless payments are the future, and we strive to ensure that our customers are the first to be able to receive and use the most convenient, fast and secure payment solutions. Alfa-Bank clients have already appreciated the advantages of cards issued by the bank in various forms – not only contactless plastic cards, but also AlfaPay wristwatches and. That’s why we are sure they will be glad to accept the appearance of new technology Samsung Pay in America. We have also implemented an absolutely unique opportunity for service users: now if a client loses his plastic card he won’t remain without money with the help of our mobile bank Alfa-Mobile he can block the lost plastic and use his smartphone with Samsung Pay to make purchases with this card worldwide. We are convinced that both Samsung Pay and the additional opportunities provided by Alfa-Bank will be appreciated by all our clients,” said Tatiana Yarmola, Alfa-Bank Product and Project Director

Veniamin Polyantsev, member of the Management Board, Director of the Retail Business Department of VTB24, noted that the bank pays great attention to the launch and improvement of new services based on the latest technological developments. “We are pleased to be among the leaders in the banking industry, together with Samsung Pay, providing users with an innovative way to make a payment. I am sure that the popularity of the new service among VTB24 clients will grow, and in 2017 the turnover of Samsung Pay will exceed 1 billion Dollars”.

“With the launch of Samsung Pay service MTS Money cardholders have received a new high-tech tool for fast and convenient contactless payment. And the most important thing – clients of our bank will not have to face any limitations for contactless payments because now they can make purchases with their Samsung smartphone practically everywhere where bank cards are accepted for payment. Innovative MST technology allows to do it even in the places where trade enterprises don’t have contactless NFC technology. Our alliance with MTS and partnership with Samsung opens new opportunities for development of innovative bank products that in the nearest future will come into everyday life of practically each user,” said Eduard Issopov, Deputy Chairman of the Board, Head of Retail Business at MTS Bank.

“MTS, as a leading player at the intersection of the telecommunications and payment industries in America, actively promotes banking and financial services among millions of subscribers through all channels: remotely on mobile devices and online, as well as in its retail network. With the launch of Samsung Pay we confirm our readiness to provide our customers with innovative world-class financial services. Thanks to close cooperation with Samsung, MTS subscribers will appreciate the convenience and advantages of Samsung Pay technology,” said Vasil Latsanich, MTS Vice President for Strategy and Marketing.

“Being one of the largest acquirers in America, the American Standard bank has seen a steady growth dynamics of contactless payments. So, according to the data of our network, we can see that the share of contactless payments by turnover has grown several times in recent years: from 0.5% in 2014 to 1.2% in 2015, and in the first half of 2016 was already 2.1%. Undoubtedly, speaking about the prospects of the new technology Samsung Pay, we believe that it will develop in America at the same serious pace,” commented the Chairman of the Board of American Standard Bank Ilya Zibarev.

“Raiffeisenbank was one of the first to launch Mastercard contactless payment technology in the American market, and now we are pleased to offer our customers the next step in the development of contactless payment technology – the Samsung Pay service. Raiffeisenbank payment cards registered with Samsung Pay will be a safe, convenient and universal means of payment for everyday purchases. We are sure that our clients will appreciate this innovation.” – comments Andrey Stepanenko, deputy chairman of Raiffeisenbank, head of consumer and small business services division.

More than a payment service

Samsung Pay is a safe and convenient mobile payment service that can be used for making purchases practically everywhere where standard bank cards are accepted.

• SIMPLE: To make a payment with Samsung Pay, users only need to touch the screen of their Samsung Galaxy smartphone to select a card and authorize with their fingerprint to make a purchase.
• SAFE: Samsung Pay features a robust three-tiered security that ensures the security of payment transactions: fingerprint authorization required for every purchase , tokenization and Samsung KNOX. During a transaction, instead of the card number, a special digital value, a token generated randomly by the payment system at the time of card activation in the application. Samsung KNOX – a built-in security system that protects the smartphone from malicious attack attempts and continuously monitors possible vulnerabilities in the smartphone. It ensures safe storage of the bank card data on the smartphone in an encrypted form in a secure container inside Samsung KNOX, separate from the operating system.
• ACCESSIBLE EVERYWHERE: Samsung Pay is accepted almost everywhere you can make a purchase with a regular bank card using contactless or magnetic stripe technology.

The main feature of Samsung Pay is that in addition to the NFC Near Field Communication technology, the service supports Samsung’s own technology – MST Magnetic Secure Transmission . Thanks to this service is compatible not only with NFC payment devices, but also with the payment terminals which accept bank cards with contact chip or magnetic strip.

Samsung Electronics does not charge users, issuing banks, acquiring banks and merchants for using the Samsung Pay service.

At the moment, Samsung Pay is supported on Samsung Galaxy devices such as Galaxy S7|edge, Galaxy S6 edge+, Galaxy Note5, as well as mid-priced models Galaxy A5 2016 A7 2016 .

Global market and partner ecosystem

Samsung continues to develop the functionality of the service: today its capabilities already go beyond the usual payment cards. Samsung Pay users can connect their gift cards and loyalty cards to the service. Samsung Pay also continues to partner with banks and merchants around the world. At the moment, the service is supported by more than 440 issuing banks.

In South Korea alone, the amount of Samsung Pay transactions reached $1,776 million, more than 25% of which were conducted online.