Paris-based GlobeiD is to enter the UK payments market with a digital wallet to enable individuals without a credit card or bank account to purchase online. The company is looking for financial institution partners to manage and deliver the e-cash service.
Under the GlobeiD scheme, users open an account online and receive a card which can be topped up at retailer point of sale units. The wallet supports multiple payment schemes, so that payment can be deferred or scheduled.
Ken Parkinson, senior VP of sales at GlobeiD Software, says the aim is to emulate the "pay as you go" mobile phone model. "Mobile phones were initially a middle class phenomenon, but the introduction of the pay as you go system has brought mobile communications to the masses. This is exactly what the digital wallet will do for e-commerce," he says.