Analysts say using smartphones as surrogate wallets to pay for purchases is still a few years off.
A report in the Globe and Mail says Canada’s banking industry is working on guidelines to allow consumers to pay for purchases with their smartphones.
But telecom analyst Iain Grant of the SeaBoard Group said smartphones first need to be equipped with what’s called Near Field Communication, a technology that allows consumers to tap or swipe their phones against terminals to pay for goods.
Grant said that in five years all mobile phones are expected to be equipped with this technology.
However, analyst Duncan Stewart of Deloitte Canada said that currently only 10% of new smartphones on the market have that ability.
Meanwhile, no more than 4% of North American retailers are equipped with terminals that would accept such payments.
The Canadian Bankers Association had no comment on when it would issue guidelines on mobile payments.
