BlackBerry's new partnership with electronic delivery payment company EnStream gives consumers a secure way to make transfers on their smartphones.
According to a press release, the three-year agreement gives banks, and consumers a safe platform to complete the transactions on the mobile devices via specialized technology. The service also safeguards customers' card information when it is transferred between financial institutions. These include the Royal Bank of Canada, TD Bank Group, CIBC, and Desjardins.
BlackBerry's president of global enterprise services said the company's business model is perfectly set up to keep consumers safe.
"BlackBerry has proven through our decades of experience in enterprise mobility that we have the ideal infrastructure and security capabilities to protect users' data when new capabilities such as mobile payments emerge," John Sims said in a statement. "Together with EnStream and partners like them around the world, BlackBerry can better reach customers and provide a complete solution for banks with opportunities in the mobile payments space."
EnStream's chief operating officer said merchants have accepted the new service quite well.
"EnStream, with BlackBerry, is already serving a number of banks and mobile operators, and is becoming a hub for payment credential delivery to smartphones in Canada," Almis Ledas said in a statement. "We expect most major Canadian banks and mobile operators to connect through this platform to meet consumer demand for efficient and safe digital transactions."
BlackBerry's new setup required company officials keep confidential information safe and comply with certain standards of the payment business. The company then obtained certifications for PCI, Visa and Mastercard.
MasterCard's vice president of emerging payments said the company prides itself on security.
"Canada is a leading global region in the adoption of technology and mobile payments, making it a key market for MasterCard innovation," Nicolas Dinh said in a statement. "Safe and secure digital transactions are the backbone of our network and mobile payment ecosystem, and BlackBerry's involvement in the payment chain will help build trust in Canada and abroad."
