E-payments

Paym

VIDEO- Explains new mobile to mobile payment system from Paym.

Developed by The Payments Council, Paym is designed for individuals to transfer money easily between accounts using a mobile phone number rather than a sort code and account number. Paym is not a stand alone service: it is integrated with the customer's current mobile banking app. You don't need a smartphone to receive a Paym payment (just a mobile phone number), but a smartphone capable of running a banking app is required to make the payment.

17 banks and building societies are registered with Paym, including Barclays, Bank of Scotland, Nationwide and Santander. The full list of particpating banks and building societies can be found at http://www.paym.co.uk/.

PayPal

VIDEO- Quick outline of what PayPal is and how it works.

A PayPal account can be funded with an electronic debit from a bank account or by a credit card. The recipient of a PayPal transfer can either request a cheque from PayPal, establish their own PayPal deposit account, or request a transfer to their bank account.

PayPal is an acquirer, charging a fee to perform payment processing for online vendors, auction sites (like eBay), and other commercial users. There is generally no fee to make a payment (except for credit card charges), but if you receive money for goods and services through PayPal, you will be charged a proportional fee. These fees depend on the currency and payment option used, the countries of the sender and recipient, the amount sent and the recipient's account type.

Contact-less and mobile Payments

VIDEO- Orange's Quick Tap system, the first of its kind in the UK, works on enabled Samsung Tocco Lite phones and allows customers to use contactless readers at tills in 50,000 stores across the UK for transactions of up to £15.

However there's been a warning that contactless payment data can be picked up from the distance.

Pingit for Smartphones

VIDEO- Explains the contactless payment system, Barclays Pingit, that allows current account customers to send and receive cash using their mobiles.

The Pingit app is free to use and is aimed at an increasingly mobile-orientated public who use their phone to manage many aspects of their lives. Barclays says the service will enable users to make quick payments to each other, such as splitting a bill in a restaurant. It could also help some small traders, such as window cleaners, who need to collect payments from regular customers.

Barclaycard PayTag

VIDEO- Explains PayTag system that turns mobiles into contactless cards.

Barclays operates a mobile interactive banking system, where a mini-card attached to the phone allows cardholders to spend up to £15 at certain stores without entering a PIN.

ATMs operating through a smartphone

Customers who use the Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) or NatWest mobile banking apps can now request cash, up to £100, via their smartphone. Read more here.