By
Mayowa Adebajo
April 10th, 2024
LoopPay, makers of a popular mobile payments service and one of ApplePay’s largest competitors, has officially been acquired by Samsung Electronics.
Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. has recently announced that it had agreed to acquire LoopPay, a mobile wallet solutions provider and payment service, which is also considered to be Apple Pay rival. A specific acquisition price is unclear at this point.
“This acquisition accelerates our vision to drive and lead innovation in the world of mobile commerce,” said JK Shin, President and Head of IT and Mobile Division at Samsung Electronics.. “Our goal has always been to build the smartest, most secure, user-friendly mobile wallet experience, and we are delighted to welcome LoopPay to take us closer to this goal,”
LoopPay turns existing magnetic stripe card readers into secure, contactless receivers. This means that LoopPay would be available in nearly every retailer that accepts magnetic strip cards. Samsung has an existing relationship with LoopPay: the company has already been an investor of LoopPay, together with Visa and Synchrony Financial, formerly GE Capital Retail Finance.
“We are excited to take our relationship with LoopPay to the next level, by bringing consumers a mobile wallet solution that is not just safe and reliable, but also widely accepted at more locations than any competing service,” said David Eun, EVP of Samsung’s Global Innovation Center.
“Through this deal we can significantly accelerate our mobile commerce efforts. LoopPay’s outstanding leaders and team have deep-rooted relationships with banks, card networks and merchants that will complement those Samsung has established over the years.”
Photo: LoopPay
At the moment LoopPay works through a mobile application and a standalone hardware device. However, the company’s technology may be realized directly into smartphones in the future, where Samsung devices could have the potential to replace credit cards the same way like Apple Pay is looking to do.
“Our vision of inspiring consumers to transition from a physical wallet to a truly digital wallet will continue,” LoopPay’s co-founder and CEO Will Graylin wrote in a note on the company’s website. “I’m most excited that Samsung shares this vision and has chosen to help change how we shop and pay for goods and services. We look forward to working with Samsung to offer the world’s most secure and compelling mobile platform.”
LoopPay appears well aware of the comparisons to Apple Pay, and even features a LoopPay vs. Apple Pay section on its website. LoopPay criticized Apple for its lack of availability, banks, supported cards and, of course, Android smartphones.
LoopPay’s technology works on a wide variety of iOS and Android devices, including the iPhone 6, 6 Plus, 5, 5s, 4, 4s, Samsung’s Galaxy 4, 5, Note 3 and 4, and phones from HTC, Huawei, LG, Motorola, Oppo, Xiaomi, ZTE and many others, according to the company’s website. The developer claims its technology is available at some 10 million retail locations.