Coin, the financial tech company was close to failure when its product launch went adrift. However the company has bounced back and now ready to launch its new product for Visa and MasterCard. meanwhile regulators are preparing regulation to regulate the fintech.
Coin is a statup company providing a smartcard which designed to integrate and connect all credit, debit, gift, loyalty and membership cards into one smartcard. The company's smartcard will be able to pay everywhere using the cards information it contained in the data.
Founded in 2012 in San Fransisco, the company used a Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) to connect all cards and store them in its smartcard. Coin attracted many attentions from media along with technology enthusiasts, and successfully raised a $15.5 million in a Series A funding in May 2014.
However, the company faced problem with manufacturers and angered many people which could become its early adopters. After such debacle, the company launched its Coin 2.0, its second-generation smart card with features never seen before in any rival offerings. Coin also provided its existing customers to improve their cards free of charge.
Vice President of Marketing at Coin Tony Pham told Forbes regarding the experience in dealing with the earlier launch hiccup, "People have not been shy about sharing the feedback. But it was good for us to take a step back. Perfect doesn't exist. None of these systems are 100 percent compatible."
The company is now equipping its 2.0 card with NFC-enabled payment system. Coin also make its card compatible with the new EMV chip technology as regulated in the US. The new card is working well to use in any gas stations and ATMs everywhere.
In another pursuit of innovation, Coin has been selected as MasterCard's partner in a non-exclusive contract on Commerce for Every Device project. Coin will provide system to turn selected wearable fitness trackers and smart watches into payment device.
Financial regulators have closely monitored innovation from financial technology companies. Regulators are looking to regulate the fintech innovation to help them develop a responsible innovation.
In the US, Office of the Comptroller of the Currency have prepared a framework of regulation for financial tech. In an interview with Wall Street Journal on Friday, chief counsel with the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency Amy Fried said, "What we're talking about now is receptivity to exploring these issues and understanding these different models as opposed to saying 'no' right off the bat."
Meanwhile regulator in Japan has also set to ease investment restrictions for fintech companies. Senior official at the Financial Services Authority (FSA) Norio Sato told Reuters, "The law changes aren't a goal, but a first step. Fintech will have a big impact on financial services."
Coin and its innovation in integrated payment service has been advancing the innovation in payment service. While regulators around the world also prepared framework to support and regulate fintech innovation.
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