Product: Visa Contactless Mini Card
Company: Visa U.S.A.

A new Visa U.S.A contactless card (with an emphasis on "less") is half the size of a regular bankcard, and a small hole in the card's lower left corner allows it to be carried on a key ring.

Visa said that its Contactless Mini Card is the first alternative product of its kind ready for deployment on a large scale. The card Association intends for its bank partners, such as JPMorgan Chase & Co., to issue the cards as complements to a regular-sized Visa credit or debit card.

The Mini Card contains radio frequency identification technology in the form of an embedded chip and a tiny antenna that sends card information to a secure contactless reader. The card's new look is a result of Visa's efforts with its card and manufacturing partners, which worked to reduce the contactless antenna's size. The solution can work in key fobs, mobile phones and other handheld devices.

The card also has a magnetic stripe so cardholders can use it at retail locations that are not yet equipped for contactless payments.

Payments made with contactless products are nearly the same as payments made with traditional bankcards. Although no swiping is required (cardholders simply wave their card near the reader), the purchase is authorized, processed and billed the same way as a traditional bankcard payment. And for most purchases under $25, cardholders are not required to sign a receipt, enter a PIN or hand over their card to a store clerk.

Merchant benefits that are being touted for implementing a contactless solution are faster checkout times, shorter lines and increased spending.

Visa U.S.A.
www.usa.visa.com