European supermarket retailers are taking on the likes of Visa, Mastercard and Google by moving into the competitive mobile payment field.
Auchan and Tesco now have apps to allow shoppers to pay for their groceries with their smartphones.
Payment transactions are also connected into retailers' loyalty schemes.
The smartphone technology have convenient features such as saved shopping lists to encourage more customers to use them.
The digital wallets also have the added bonus of providing the supermarkets with customer data on shopping habits – essential for preparing targeted advertising.
Retailers are offering rewards and discount deals to customers using the apps.
ebay's Paypal is also experimenting with the innovative smartphone technology.
A new mobile payment app, being accepted by retailers globally, was recently launched in Germany.
Yapital, developed by eCommerce firm Otto, is now live in stores allowing shoppers to pay for goods online.
In the US, big retailers such as Walmart, Target and Best Buy have announced plans to set up the joint digital wallet, the Merchant Customer Exchange (MCX).
Read more about mobile wallets and other grocery innovation in the current issue of ESM magazine.
© 2014 - European Supermarket Magazine