Samsung announced in a press release this evening that it has purchased LoopPay, an Apple Pay like mobile payment company. LoopPay turns existing magnetic stripe card readers into secure, contactless receivers. This means that, in an ideal world, LoopPay would be available in nearly every retailer that accepts magnetic strip cards. A specific acquisition price is unclear at this point.
As part of the deal, however, LoopPay founders and veteran payment industry experts Will Graylin and George Wallner will join Samsung and work closely with the company’s mobile division. The deal was rumored back in December and at the time, Re/code claimed that Samsung was planning to incorporate the technology into its upcoming Galaxy S6 flagship. The device is expected to be released at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona next month.
LoopPay, in its statement regarding the acquisition, explained that it will become a wholly owned subsidy of Samsung Electronics America. At Samsung, LoopPay says its team will continue to work on inspiring customers to transition from a physical wallet to a truly digital solution.
Right now, LoopPay makes cases for popular smartphones, including the iPhone 6. The company also makes a dongle for your keychain. The technology works thanks to a metal coil within the LoopPay cases and dongles that creates a magnetic field that communicates with regular card readers.
The full press release is below:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bw1l149Rb1k
Samsung to Acquire LoopPay, Transformative Digital Wallet Platform
Mountain View, CA and Seoul, Korea – February 18, 2015 – Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. today announced that it has agreed to acquire LoopPay, the acclaimed mobile wallet solutions provider that turns existing magnetic stripe readers into secure, contactless receivers. LoopPay’s technology has the potential to work in approximately 90% of existing point-of-sale (POS) terminals, according to internal research, with no investment in new infrastructure required by merchants. LoopPay will join Samsung to strengthen the company’s overall efforts to provide users with seamless, safe, and reliable mobile wallet solutions.
As part of the acquisition, LoopPay founders and veteran payment industry entrepreneurs Will Graylin and George Wallner will work closely with Samsung’s Mobile Division. LoopPay has built an advanced and widely accepted contactless payment solution using its patented Magnetic Secure Transmission (MST) technology. LoopPay’s talent and technology, paired with Samsung’s world leading mobile technology, global presence, and distribution capabilities will help drive the next wave of innovation in the digital smart wallet.
“This acquisition accelerates our vision to drive and lead innovation in the world of mobile commerce. Our goal has always been to build the smartest, most secure, user-friendly mobile wallet experience, and we are delighted to welcome LoopPay to take us closer to this goal,” said JK Shin, President and Head of IT and Mobile Division at Samsung Electronics.
Samsung has an existing relationship with LoopPay, having first identified the potential for the pioneering technology when it became a strategic investor along with Visa and Synchrony Financial. The investment, which was facilitated by Samsung’s Global Innovation Center, helped fuel LoopPay’s MST technology development.
“We are excited to take our relationship with LoopPay to the next level, by bringing consumers a mobile wallet solution that is not just safe and reliable, but also widely accepted at more locations than any competing service,” said David Eun, EVP of Samsung’s Global Innovation Center. “Through this deal we can significantly accelerate our mobile commerce efforts. LoopPay’s outstanding leaders and team have deep-rooted relationships with banks, card networks and merchants that will complement those Samsung has established over the years.”
Margaret Keane, President and CEO of Synchrony Financial, the largest provider of private label credit cards in the U.S. and a leader in promotional financing, as well as an investor in LoopPay, commented, “This is great news for our customers who can access their cards and make payments using LoopPay’s contactless MST technology. Our goal is to offer valuable products for our clients, service providers, and our customers. We look forward to working with LoopPay and others to deliver secure mobile payment solutions for all of our 60 million active accounts.”
“LoopPay is focused on delivering a digital wallet solution that is dependable for consumers around the world, one that provides more value from card issuers and the merchants that serve them,” said Will Graylin, CEO of LoopPay. “We are excited to join the Samsung family to continue our goal of making smartphones trusted, secure smart wallets and unlock the limitless possibilities of mobile enabled commerce.”
About Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd.
Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. inspires the world and shapes the future with transformative ideas and technologies, redefining the worlds of TVs, smartphones, wearable devices, tablets, cameras, digital appliances, printers, medical equipment, network systems, and semiconductor and LED solutions. We are also leading in the Internet of Things space through, among others, our Smart Home and Digital Health initiatives. We employ 307,000 people across 84 countries with annual sales of US $196 billion. To discover more, please visit our official website at www.samsung.com and our official blog at global.samsungtomorrow.com
About Samsung Global Innovation Center
The Samsung Global Innovation Center brings software and services innovation to Samsung Electronics by working with startups and entrepreneurs through investments, acquisitions, partnerships and the Samsung Accelerator. The GIC’s deep integration with Samsung consumer electronics and mobile business units provide entrepreneurs and startups with unparalleled access to Samsung resources, decision-makers, product roadmap, and the world’s largest platform for distribution. Opened in 2013, the GIC operates across offices in Mountain View, Palo Alto, New York City, and Suwon, South Korea.
About LoopPay
Founded in 2012 in Boston, MA, LoopPay is accepted at more merchants than any other digital wallet solution. LoopPay’s patented Magnetic Secure TransmissionTM (MST) technology turns existing mag stripe readers into mobile contactless receivers without any changes or costs incurred by merchants or their payment processors. LoopPay’s digital wallet can store and use a wide variety of mag stripe cards including debit and credit cards, private label cards, gift cards loyalty cards and rewards cards. Access to the LoopPay app and data is password and PIN-protected and LoopPay encrypts and stores all card track data in secure memory within any LoopPay device. LoopPay is a Level One PCI Certified Payment Provider. To learn more about LoopPay, visit www.LoopPay.com.
Dear Friends,
Today is a great day for LoopPay and all those who have supported us over the last few years. I’m excited to let you know that LoopPay has signed an agreement to be acquired and become a wholly owned subsidiary of Samsung Electronics America, Inc.
With our earliest supporters at our side, we have been at the forefront of contactless payments to create a platform that brings together issuers, merchants and consumers that facilitate a seamless and rewarding digital wallet experience. We will continue to innovate and operate as an independent team from Boston, Massachusetts.
Thanks to our customers, staff, management team, families, partners and investors who have made LoopPay the world’s most accepted mobile payment solution which leverages existing magnetic stripe readers to receive payments from consumers’ mobile devices.
Our vision of inspiring consumers to transition from a physical wallet to a truly digital wallet will continue. I’m most excited that Samsung shares this vision and has chosen to help change how we shop and pay for goods and services. We look forward to working with Samsung to offer the world’s most secure and compelling mobile platform.
The road ahead is an exciting one, and we look forward to continuing this journey together.
Will
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