PSCU Prepared for Anticipated Rapid Adoption of Contactless Cards in 2020

CUSO reports issuing more than 500,000 contactless cards this year; expects to produce more than three million in 2020

St. Petersburg, Fla. — (Nov. 20, 2019) — PSCU, the nation’s premier payments credit union service organization (CUSO), is prepared for the rapid adoption of contactless cards on the horizon. This year, PSCU has already distributed more than 500,000 contactless cards to members from 14 Owner credit unions through natural reissuance. In 2020, the CUSO is poised to produce more than three million new contactless plastics and deliver them to more than 100 credit unions to support natural and mass reissuance strategies.

“At PSCU, we strive to ensure that our Owner credit unions are at the forefront of the latest payment trends and innovations – and that their members’ accounts are the ones getting used most frequently,” said Jeremiah Lotz, managing vice president, Digital Experience and Payment Products at PSCU. “Offering and providing Owners with contactless cards is one of the many ways in which we help our credit unions achieve top-of-wallet status. As contactless card adoption continues to rise in the coming year, we look forward to helping our credit unions and their members make the most of this growth opportunity.”

In its second annual Eye on Payments study, PSCU discovered that, despite the early stages of contactless card issuance by financial institutions, about one-fourth of respondents already have a contactless card and use it at least a few times per month. Of those that have and use a contactless card, convenience, ease/speed of use and security are the primary motivators for doing so, while the primary reason consumers do not use their contactless card is due to lack of acceptance at stores they frequent.

The number of consumers using a contactless payment method is expected to increase as more merchants turn on their Near Field Communication (NFC) technology and begin accepting tap-and-go forms of payments, including cards, wearables and other devices. According to Visa, 95% of terminals shipped are already contactless-enabled and eight out of the top 10 merchants are accepting NFC payments as of October 2019.

“Credit unions should be prepared to not only offer contactless cards to their members, but also have information readily available to educate members on how to use these new payment methods and ascertain whether a merchant’s point-of-sale terminal is contactless-enabled,” added Lotz.

PSCU currently has more than 100 credit unions in queue for contactless card reissuance. To learn more about PSCU’s contactless card offering, visit pscu.com/contactless.

About PSCU

PSCU, the nation’s premier payments CUSO, supports the success of 1,500 credit unions representing more than 3.8 billion transactions annually. Committed to service excellence and focused on innovation, PSCU’s payment processing, risk management, data and analytics, loyalty programs, digital banking, marketing, strategic consulting and mobile platforms help deliver possibilities and seamless member experiences. Comprehensive, 24/7/365 member support is provided by contact centers located throughout the United States. The origin of PSCU’s model is collaboration and scale, and the company has leveraged its influence on behalf of credit unions and their members for more than 40 years. Today, PSCU provides an end-to-end, competitive advantage that enables credit unions to securely grow and meet evolving consumer demands. For more information, visit pscu.com.