Credit Unions Should Control Digital Wallets

Executives from the Omaha, Neb.-based digital payment solutions provider Prairie Cloudware said they believe credit unions should take ownership of the digital wallet process. It would allow them to reestablish their trusted payment services role while decreasing fraud costs and improving ROI.

“The process of authenticating the cards or payments that get put into the Apple wallet is different in the sense that financial institutions may not be absent from the process, but they are certainly playing a back-seat role,” Doug Parr, chief revenue officer for Prairie Cloudware, whose product integrates with digital banking services, explained. “For all the credit unions that have signed up for Apple Pay, we ask: Why not offer your own branded wallet?”

Payment processes vary greatly for traditional POS, Apple Pay and NFC-enabled transactions. In a traditional POS transaction, a consumer uses a check or plastic payment card issued by a financial institution, and the authentication takes place at the point of issuance. Then, the process is completed through the legacy payment track via check or card rails.