The Commonwealth Bank today announced it will soon update its Commbank smartphone apps on iOS and Android to include a new design and a number of new features; including NFC payments for select smartphones.
The soon-to-be released app will be an update to the existing app for Commbank customers, and will include a number of new options, many taken from the bank's current Kaching! app. Customers will be able to send payments to third-parties using a mobile number, email address or Facebook profile; check account balance without needing to log in; and maybe BPAY payments using a QR Code reader.
Commbank will also expand the reach of its contactless payment methods by allowing customers will compatible phones to use the built-in NFC chip and the app at Paywave and PayPass terminals.
For phones that are not supported by built-in NFC hardware, like Apple's iPhone, Commbank will offer an NFC sticker that can be affixed to the handset.
Detractors to smartphone NFC payments have joked in the past that it would be easier to stick a Paywave credit card to the back of an iPhone than it would be to build it into a phone. It seems the Commbank agrees.
Keeping it safe
As part of its announcement, the Commbank team made sure to emphasis the security measures offered to customers using contactless payments.
For starters, all payments are 100% guaranteed by the bank, so if someone steals your card, Commbank will pay you back for what money is subsequently stolen.
The app also has a button which can turn Tap 'n' Pay payments on and off, offering this security measure behind your PIN number for the app. If the service is off and you phone is stolen, the perpetrator would need to know your PIN to activate contactless payments.
Joseph Hanlon
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