STOCKHOLM--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Swedish Seamless (STO:SEAM) (OMX: SEAM) continues its rapid expansion of its mobile wallet SEQR. A collaboration with bpost bank in Belgium was announced today, at a press conference in Brussels that will enable consumers to connect their bank account to SEQR’s versatile and generic mobile payment solution. SEQR enables anyone with a smartphone to pay in stores, online, at restaurants, utility bills and parking lots, transfer money at no charge, store receipts digitally and receive offers and promotions directly - through one mobile app solution. McDonald’s is the first to roll out and will make SEQR available in all of its Belgian restaurants at the time of launch in the spring of 2014.
- The collaboration with bpost bank provides us with another stable and substantial international financial partner as we make our seventh market entry. Thanks to our smooth payment method and the significant decrease in interchange fees, we are delighted that McDonald’s once again realizes the merchant benefits and have chosen to partner with us. We look forward to a large scale roll out which will make SEQR available to all Belgians, says Peter Fredell, CEO of Seamless, the company that provides SEQR.
As Seamless’ first partner in Belgium, bpost bank will offer its customers the ability to connect SEQR’s mobile payment application to their bank account. This will allow them to make payments in stores and online quickly, securely and without charge. Through the SEQR app, the user simply scans or taps a QR-code/NFC at the check-out of partnering merchants and approves the purchase by entering a PIN code. SEQR is a generic payment method, independent from existing payment structures, that enables merchants to lower their interchange fees significantly compared to those charged by traditional card companies; a win-win-win for all parties.
"SEQR is a mobile payment solution which is unique in the Belgian marketplace. As a simple and free solution, SEQR accords with the values of bpost bank, who wants to provide products and services which are easy to use, secure and for everyone", says Frédéric Jonnart, Director of Marketing & Sales at bpost bank.
Belgium is the seventh market entry for SEQR after Sweden, Norway, Finland, Kuwait, Malaysia and Romania. As in Sweden, McDonald’s will be one of the early adopters to offer this flexible and secure mobile payment method to its customers in Belgium.
"At McDonald’s, we are always looking at new technologies to increase the McDonald's experience by offering our customers extra services," said Kristel Muls, spokesperson of McDonald's Belgium. “McDonald's is just evolving at the same pace as consumers. By introducing SEQR, we offer a, easy, fast and secure way of payment in order to increase the quality of our service. The roll out is foreseen in the spring of 2014 in all Belgian McDonald’s restaurants.” SEQR was most recently launched in Romania together with GarantiBank. 400 stores are signed up to roll out and Subway Upground, the Bata and For Family networks, Bierhaus 67 and AVE Hotels in Bucharest were among the merchants that were live at the launch. SEQR will also be implemented nationwide in the Nike, Collective, Folli Follie, Converse, KIX, Calvin Klein Jeans, Star Place and Arsis networks as well as the convenient store chain In medio. On November 5th, Seamless, one of the world’s largest suppliers of payment solutions, announced that the company had raised 36 million EUR to capitalize on expansion opportunities.
ABOUT SEQR, by Seamless
SEQR (se·cure) is Sweden’s and Europe’s most used mobile wallet in stores and online. SEQR enables anybody with a smartphone to pay in stores, at restaurants, parking lots and online, transfer money at no charge, store receipts digitally and receive offers and promotions directly through one mobile app. Through the SEQR app, the user simply scans or taps a QR-code at check-out and approves the purchase by entering a PIN code. Fast, smooth and safe, SEQR’s payment solution enables merchants to lower interchange fees significantly compared to those charged by traditional card companies. SEQR’s unique transaction platform has been developed by Seamless, one of the world’s largest suppliers of payment systems for mobile phones. Founded in 2001 and active in 30 countries, Seamless handles more than 3,1 billion transactions annually through 525 000 active sales outlets. SEQR is available at Sweden’s largest grocery chains, fast food chains and national retailer chains including McDonald’s, Hemköp and Ur&Penn. In 2013 SEQR was launched in Romania together with GarantiBank. Seamless is traded on Nasdaq OMX Stockholm, under the SEAM ticker.
About bpost bank
bpost bank was founded in 1995 under the name 'Bank van De Post". It's an independent Belgian bank based on a unique partnership model. It's owned in equal parts (50/50) by bpost and BNP Paribas Fortis and managed by an independent management committee. bpost bank offers banking services to over 1 million clients on the Belgian market. In an increasingly complex and unpredictable financial world, bpost bank thinks her services must be simple, safe and accessible for everyone. That's why bpost bank wants to be an increasingly simple and safe bank for everyone. www.bpostbank.be
This information is such information that Seamless Distribution AB (publ) is required to disclose pursuant to the Swedish Securities Market Act and/or the Swedish Financial Instrument Trading Act. The information was released for publication on 13 November, 2013 at 11.00 am (CET).
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