Described as a “forthcoming NFC (near-field communications) wallet experience,” the new PayPal system will allow for tap-to-pay purchasing. That would likely put it in the same class of heavy-hitters as Apple Pay and Samsung Pay, and might well make some wonder how PayPal could possibly compete.
The good news here is that PayPal’s new NFC experience won’t be going it alone. Word is that it’s already got Bank of America supporting it, with “new experiences” available to said customers starting in the first half of 2018.
Granted, it’s not a huge surprise that PayPal would take this step. It’s already got a substantial user base behind it, so it’s not like it’s going to have to fend off competition on this front or try to seize a market out from under the established leaders. That’s good news; if it had to set up shop from scratch, it likely would have had a real problem on its hands.
This way, it can effectively just add a little extra functionality and let all those out there with PayPal balances, like myself, put those balances to use in more places. The farther PayPal can advance toward ubiquity, the better off it will be in the end. I know I’ve wished I could use my PayPal balance to pay for groceries, not just route cash to a checking account and pay that way.
It’s interesting to note here that PayPal has already been spotted, at last report, making deals with both Apple and Samsung, making it seem like PayPal’s trying to play both sides of the fence. That’s not necessarily a bad thing—hedging a bet seldom is—but it’s certainly going to make for an interesting picture going forward.