OCBC and UOB tap NETS for mobile and online payments

Purchases will directly be debited to the user's bank account through NETSPay.

OCBC and UOB partnered with the Network for Electronic Transfers (NETS) to allow cardholders to make mobile payments through the NETSPay app. 

Originally available to DBS/POSB customers, about 11 million NETS card users can now use their phones to pay at more than 105,000 acceptance points in Singapore.

Consumers need only scan the NETS QR code or tap their NFC-enabled phone on the NETS terminal to make payments. Purchases are then debited directly to the user’s bank account.

NETSPay users can store up to ten ATM bank cards on the app, allowing them to choose between bank accounts for different purchases and track their transactions by bank account.

According to NETS group CEO Jeffrey Goh, NETSPay transaction surged 70 times since its launch on October 2017 due to the convenience of mobile payments at point-of-sale. “We’re confident that this number will continue to grow exponentially with the addition of OCBC and UOB customers.” 

“Mobile payments are gaining steam in Singapore, with increasing levels of awareness and the government’s push for a cashless society,” OCBC Bank head of digital payments Milind Sanghavi commented.

OCBC started its first cashless payment solution back in 2014 and started the consolidated payments app with NETS in 2017.

“The NETSPay app will complement our initiatives and give our customers different options that enable them to make mobile contactless payments directly from their bank accounts,” UOB head of digital and mobile Aaron Chiew said.

He added that there has been an average increase of 198% every month since UOB enabled NETS QR code and NETS mobile contactless payments in their mobile banking app since 2017.

NETS static QR will later be incorporated under the SG QR code specifications when the SG QR code is released later in 2018. According to a report, there are about 60,000 NETS QR acceptance points available for mobile payments.