The Chase Pay mobile wallet will soon be entering the largest American supermarket chain.
Kroger mobile payments will soon become an option for customers at the massive U.S. grocery store chain by way of a new deal with JPMorgan. The reason is that the supermarket has agreed to start accepting the bank’s mobile wallet, Chase Pay starting next year.
The announcement of the mobile payment agreement was made jointly by both companies.
The Chase Pay wallet will start being available for Kroger mobile payments at the start of next year. It will begin with certain locations and expand from there. The companies said that it is Kroger’s first foray into the use of mobile transactions but that it is seeking to begin offering a more mobile friendly experience to consumers that are beginning to expect it from leading American companies.
As of yet, mobile payments have seen a strikingly low adoption rate when compared to many other markets around the world. Americans have become quite comfortable and confident with plastic debit and credit cards, providing little motivation to learn how to use a new and potentially risky form of technology and payment. Moreover, merchants have hesitated at the idea of having to pay higher fees which are frequently associated with these transactions.
That said, Kroger mobile payments and other services are beginning to take off at a gradual rate.
Banks, credit card networks, technology giants and retailers have continued to invest in mobile payments and mobile wallet apps. They hope to come up with a combination of payment features and services that will have adequate appeal to both American consumers and merchants in order to improve adoption rates.
JPMorgan recently acquired payment technology from the Merchant Consumer Exchange, allowing it to broaden its capabilities. This made its Chase Pay mobile wallet a more attractive transaction service for Kroger.
“With groceries, it’s a really key category for us, not only because of the volumes of transactions there, but because of the frequency,” said Chase Pay managing director at JPMorgan, Tom O’Brien.
The partnership with JPMorgan Chase aligns well with Kroger mobile payments as the bank’s mobile wallet app uses a system similar to the barcodes already used by the grocery store’s scanners. This allows the transaction technology to be compatible with Kroger’s existing infrastructure and avoids the need to install new equipment.
