One year after launching its contactless credit cards - Chase cards with "blink" - Chase Bank U.S.A., N.A., a division of JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE:JPM), has issued nearly seven million cards with blink to cardmembers in Connecticut, Colorado, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania and Texas.
From "blinking" Slurpees at 7-Eleven to Shorti Hoagies at Wawa, Chase cardmembers may now use their cards with blink at more than 25,000 merchant locations nationwide, ranging from convenience stores to sports stadiums.
Partnering with Visa U.S.A. and MasterCard International, Chase was the first issuer to broadly offer contactless credit cards to consumers. Today, Chase cardmembers across the country speed through checkout lines faster and more conveniently at merchant locations including 7-Eleven stores, AMC Theatres, Cinemark USA, CVS/pharmacy, RaceTrac, Regal Entertainment Group, Sheetz, Walgreens and Wawa.
"blink transactions have proven to be a big hit with Wawa customers," said Bob Riesenbach, New Initiatives Manager for Wawa. "blink has enabled us to make our customers' and associates' lives easier by speeding up our checkout time at the register."
Chase is also changing sports fans' experiences at stadiums and ballparks. Chase has partnerships with the Texas Rangers, the Los Angeles Dodgers and the San Diego Padres that not only provide fans an opportunity to apply for a co-branded credit card, but also use their Chase card with blink to enjoy the game and not wait in concession lines. Additionally, there are dozens of professional stadiums around the nation that accept Chase cards with blink.
As a possible extension of contactless payments, Chase participated in the first large-scale Near Field Communication (NFC) trial by blink-enabling mobile phones to deliver mobile phone contactless payments to Atlanta Hawks and Thrasher fans at Philips Arena.
"Contactless commerce has experienced tremendous growth," said Erik Michielsen, director of ABI Research's RFID and M2M practice. "We expect contactless payments to continue to grow, and companies like Chase contribute to making merchant and consumer adoption a reality."
How blink Works
To use Chase cards with blink, cardmembers simply hold their card near a point-of-sale reader at checkout, instead of swiping their card or handing it to a store employee. As cardmembers hold their Chase card with blink near the point-of-sale reader, the reader quickly emits a tone and lights up to signal payment confirmation. Consumers use cards with blink everywhere they currently use credit cards - anywhere Visa and MasterCard are accepted - and can also use blink wherever contactless payments are accepted. Chase cards with blink are safe and secure, relying on additional layers of payment security to prevent and mitigate fraud, including electronic authorization, neural network fraud monitoring, fraud alerts and others.
"With Chase cards with blink, our goal is to make it easier and faster for consumers to make everyday purchases and to increase efficiency and customer loyalty for merchants," said Tom O'Donnell, senior vice president, Chase Card Services. "We jump started the change in how people pay and now look ahead to bringing that quick and safe experience to more consumers at more merchant locations where speed and convenience make a real difference."