The impact of EMV migration on the global cards payments infrastructure: How it will change and expand card use

The migration from payment cards using magnetic stripe technology to chip-based solutions is in full swing in most parts of the world. It is first and foremost driven by the need to reduce the fraud associated with counterfeiting cards or taking advantage of lost or stolen cards, as well as the cost of administering this fraud. Additionally, chip-based payment cards offer many advantages to all stakeholders above and beyond sheer fraud reduction, eg they enable convenient and secure low-value payments and efficient cardholder loyalty schemes. In combination with contactless transaction technology, chip provides a very attractive way to speed up overall checkout times at the point of interaction. This paper describes the relevant EMV (Europay/MasterCard/Visa) standards that allow for secure investments in the chip card infrastructure, the costs and benefits to banks, merchants and consumers, and assesses the impact of the migration itself. It then elaborates on the opportunities for creating new business value in the financial industry based on the capabilities and features of chip technology, thereby increasing the return on the initial investment and appeal of card products to both consumers and merchants.