EXACT payement please, we are in Kingston, Onatrio.
Ray Van Eng (04/14/97)
With a launch date of December 10, 1996 in Kingston, ON, Exact can claim to be the first 'reloadable' stored value card to be in use in Canada, beating out both Mondex (in Guelph on 02/13/97) and Visa Cash (the one used in Vancouver in mid-'96 is not reloadable). The Exact card is no newcomer to the smart card marketplace. It is built around the Belgium Proton system that is in fact the most widely used re-loadable stored value scheme in the world today which will have a total of 20 million cards in circulation by the end of this year, though its presence is mostly confined in Belgium, the Netherlands and Switzerland. Actually, the three card scheme are pretty similar and basically function as electronic purses or e-wallets for handling petty cash transactions that offer convenience and speed for both the consumer and the merchant by eliminating the exchange of notes and coins. OK. So where is Kingston, ON? It is a lakeside community halfway between Montreal and Toronto along the Trans-Canada Highway 401 with a population of about 141,000 and home to the Queen's University, Royal Military College and St. Lawrence College. You may also wonder why all of a sudden, Canada becomes such a hot-bed for testing stored value cards. Well, there are a number of compelling reasons. Canada is the world's second largest user of plastic cards. There are more than 46 million credit and debit cards in circulation for a country of about 29 million people. In fact, the debit card market grew by a whooping 43% last year. And according to the Interac Association, cash transaction in this country is between $40 to $60 billion annually. Although 97% of Canadians say they prefer using cash for transactions under $10, citing convenience as an important factor, 41% say they would be very interested in trying out new payment technologies. Those are the reasons why the Exact partners: Bank of Montreal, the Toronto Dominion Bank and Canada Trust have designed the system with the help of Bell Canada and Nortel (who are also involved in the Mondex pilot in Guelph) to ensure their success. Judging from the initial response, the signs are encouraging. As the Exact trial entered its fifth month of testing, over 6,500 customers have used the system and have spent more than $300,000 in about 45,000 transactions. According to an independent study, 80% of Kingstonian have heard of the Exact card and nearly 70% of those who have used it says they are "satisfied" or "extremely satisfied" with the card. The key appeals are overall convenience (cited by 88% of users), reduced need to carry cash (46%), and the time saved at the checkout counters (20%). To obtain the Exact card, you have to go to one of the bank branches where a customer service rep will issue you a card and help you load up for the very first time. Subsequently, you can withdraw cash from your account and load it into the card (for a maximum of $200) at any Exact terminal, usually found right next to an ABM in a shopping mall, student campus, or other high traffic location. A PIN is required for the operation. To make a purchase, simply place your card into an Exact card point-of-sale (POS) reader, the merchant will key in the amount which you will approve by pressing the 'OK' button. Pushing a yellow check button will allow you to view balance on your card. At the end of the day, the merchant will use a modem to transfer the total sales amount to his/her bank account, thereby making the 'deposit'. About 600 merchants have already joined the Exact program. They include a variety of retail establishments such as convenience stores, video rentals, dry-cleaners, fast food restaurants, coffeehouses, gas stations, florists, toy and gift shops, taxis, student campuses, pharmacies etc. Bank of Montreal, TD Bank and Canada Trust is offering
the Exact card to consumers at no extra charge at the moment, however,
each of the financial institutions will individually determine the pricing
for these cards as they move past the introductory period. |
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