Target May Launch A Mobile Wallet

By Christine Kern, contributing writer

Target is reportedly in the early stages of developing its own mobile wallet to compete with those already offered by Apple, Google, Samsung, and Walmart, according to Money. Although there is no official launch date for the new platform, it could launch as early as 2016. The product would allow customers to pay for merchandise via a mobile app on their smartphones.

Reuters reported that the Target wallet is far enough along to have partnerships with credit card issuers and advanced technology, possibly using QR codes rather than near field communications, but hasn’t been tested in stores.

The news of Target’s project comes close on the heels of the announcement of Walmart Pay, which allows customers to pay with their smartphones in Walmart stores.

What makes the Target move so interesting is that it, like Walmart, is also a member of the retailer-backed consortium MCX, which has been developing mobile wallet CurrentC. Merchant Customer Exchange is the only merchant-owned mobile commerce network built to streamline the customer shopping experience across all major retail verticals, according to its website. Target was one of the first members of the Merchant Customer Exchange when it was formed in 2011. Best Buy followed in 2012, and Target even tested CurrentC at some of its stores last year. CurrentC uses QR-code based payments — not NFC payments — that do not require the installation of new equipment

If Target’s mobile wallet uses scanning technology to link the wallet to point of sale transactions, according to Reuters, the payments process could be integrated within Target’s app Cartwheel.