An Atlanta-based mobile wallet service provider, called “selfiepay,” announced its official launch exclusively to CU Times Tuesday. The application allows users to sign in to its service simply by snapping a photo.
The startup, which applied for a trademark for the name “selfiepay,” originally participated in a 2012 accelerator program backed by venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz and Google Venture Startups. It is now conducting private beta testing with several Atlanta-based companies using facial recognition – plus one other form of biometric capture that will be unveiled soon, the startup said – for its mobile wallet service.
According to founder Sharron Battle, selfiepay differs from other mobile wallet providers by offering a seamless, efficient and more secure payment experience for consumers and merchants.
Because selfiepay allows users to sign in with just a smartphone photo, shoppers can walk into a store with nothing but themselves to use their selfiepay account. In addition, the service features a dashboard view of users as they approach retail locations in real-time using geo location mapping, which helps retailers track payments.
There are three ways for consumers to use selfiepay: A biometric mobile wallet payment, a prepaid pickup where users pay for something just prior to arriving at their destination, and a point of sale payment or refund transfer.
The company has partnered with Samsung, Best Buy, the Isle of Man-based Optimal Payments PLC, and another unnamed payments company described by selfiepay as “the fifth largest processor in the world.”
The initial idea for selfiepay stemmed from the need for a social community that would allow for real-time monetization of intellectual property.
“Feedback about the product so far has been that testers believe that the product is very innovative, fun and they can see the security aspect over other wallets,” Battle told CU Times. “The reaction from users with regard to the registration process has been interesting, they would love to be able to take more selfies as they find the registration process is very engaging. The demographic we're focused on is millennials and we're looking to engage others over time that will progressively gain confidence in our mobile wallet product.”
The company plans to beta test more than 500 users in retail and college campuses with the goal of engaging at least 2.3 million selfiepay users within one year.
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Roy Urrico
Roy W. Urrico specializes in articles about financial technology and services for Credit Union Times, as well as ghostwriting, copywriting, and case studies. Also: writer/editor of a semi-annual newsletter for Association for Financial Technology since 1997 and history projects funded by the U.S Interior Department, National Park Service and Warren County (N.Y.).
