Samsung, Syniverse To Make Mobile Payments Easier and More Trustworthy

Samsung SDS and Syniverse are partnering to develop a wallet-agnostic, mobile payment platform ready to support multiple blockchain technologies. The aim is to deliver regulatory-compliant, cross-region mobile transactions for mobile operators and enterprises.

by Tom Donoghue

Tags: API, Blockchain, mobile, payments, . transactions, trust, Samsung, Syniverse,

The companies expect the solution to appeal to a wide range of verticals – including logistics, financial, travel and hospitality, media and entertainment, and retail.

The project combines technologies from Samsung SDS and its Nexledger Universal platform with Syniverse mobile technologies which enable customizable multi-channel messaging and connectivity.

Under a memorandum of understanding between the two firms, the plan is to unify capabilities from Samsung SDS’s Nexledger Universal platform and Syniverse’s Universal Commerce blockchain solution Mobile Engagement platform. The result will be a common platform that can work with any mobile operator. Further, the new platform will let any mobile user to send money, loyalty points, or other digital currencies to other mobile users or merchants on a global basis.

The idea is that “your phone number has become your easiest payment method, “according to the firms.

Executives from the two firms shared formal statements on the joint initiative.

Scott Koo, President, Samsung SDS America said;

“The need for simple, fast, secure, auditable, and cost-effective monetary transactions is growing worldwide. Today the cost to consumers and merchants is too high. The proven attributes of blockchain, along with the scalability and flexibility of Nexledger Universal, and Syniverse’s decades of payment and settlement experience, create the opportunity to lead the market in delivering a frictionless phone-to-phone or phone-to-merchant payment engine for secure, simple exchange of value. With our shared values, differentiated offerings, and extensive capabilities, Samsung SDS and Syniverse are primed to securely convert your mobile phone into an easy-to-use digital wallet.”

Syniverse CEO Dean Douglas described the project this way:

“Our goal is to establish universal financial transaction trust for every connected device in the world. As part of this, we’re focused on reducing the friction of cross-regional mobile payments and addressing ever-increasing regulatory requirements by leveraging blockchain technologies. Today’s digital transformation requires mobile operators and businesses to offer their customers and employees seamless mobile experiences, especially in the area of clearing and settlement. In collaboration with Samsung SDS, we intend to integrate the power of blockchain to design a mobile wallet platform that solves some key challenges of mobile payments and builds trust in a mobile user’s identity, device, and transaction.”

Samsung SDS’s Nexledger platform allows enterprises to take control of distributed transactions, securely and conveniently. Already, the platform has been implemented in various fields, such as finance, manufacturing, logistics, and the public sector.

Further, Nexledger Universal offers a flexible API that can be applied to different blockchains like Ethereum, Hyperledger Fabric, and Samsung’s own Nexledger consensus algorithm.

Nexledger Universal is designed to interoperate with diverse wallet-device architectures from vanilla Android to the defense-grade Samsung Knox for exceptional security when needed, company execs noted.

For its part, Syniverse’s Universal Commerce blockchain service simplifies, accelerates, and secures multiparty agreements by replacing manual processes with smart contracts, unifying data records, and providing encryption. It reduces the friction of doing business in a revenue-sharing world of large-scale global services and technologies – regardless of industry or connectivity type.

Overall, Syniverse’s mobile technology products and services provide a secure instant-access platform for seamless, customizable multi-channel messaging and connectivity. The company’s Mobile Engagement Platform connects more than 7 billion mobile devices in 158 countries and annually processes more than $35 billion in transactions for mobile operators and enterprises.

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