(Bloomberg) -- Seven providers of mobile payment services owned in large part by banks are building a pan-European network, as traditional lenders seek to counter the growing competition from fintechs and global technology giants like Apple Inc.
Danske Bank A/S's MobilePay, which operates in Denmark and Finland, said the association is designed to pave the way for cross-border transactions for as many as 25 million users. The other companies involved are Belgium's Banccontact Payconiq, Germany and Austria's Bluecode, Portugal's SIBS, Sweden's Swish, Norway's VIPPS and Switzerland's TWINT.
“The rapid growth in mobile payments will lead to an increasing user demand of being able to pay everywhere in Europe with your mobile payment solution, leaving cards and physical wallets behind,” MobilePay chief executive officer Mark Wraa-Hansen said in a statement. “We will see more mobile payment systems joining in the time to come.”
The European Mobile Payment System Association is based in Zurich, and its members have more than 350 partner banks using their networks.
Read more: European Fintechs Escape Troubles Afflicting Established Banks
To contact the reporter on this story: Frances Schwartzkopff in Copenhagen at fschwartzko1@bloomberg.net
To contact the editors responsible for this story: Tasneem Hanfi Brögger at tbrogger@bloomberg.net, Nick Rigillo
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