How SwatchPAY works!

After some initial distrust, you too have learned to appreciate the convenience of contactless payments and have begun to pay your expenses in physical stores with smartphones and smartwatches. However, it has often happened that you arrive in front of the cashier and find that your payment device had a dead battery, forcing you to put your hand to cash. A real hassle, I understand, and that’s why today I’d like to talk to you about a solution that I think you’ll find quite interesting: SwatchPAY!.

SwatchPAY! is a contactless payment system based on NFC technology that has been integrated into some Swatch models, the iconic Swiss wristwatches. The technology in question allows you to associate a payment card with your watch and pay in physical stores simply by bringing your wrist close to the POS. Yes, you read that right! We are talking about a smart payment system integrated, however, in a “traditional” wristwatch, which therefore does not need to be recharged via USB!

You can choose between different SwatchPAY! Models, suitable for all tastes and budgets, and the payment card association procedure (called “tokenization”) is very simple: it can be done directly at the time of purchase or at a later time. , using the SwatchPAY app! by smartphone or by going to the store. To find out more, read on: below you will find out what SwatchPAY is and how it works! down to the smallest detail.

Index

• What is SwatchPAY!
• SwatchPAY watches!
• How SwatchPAY works!
  • How to activate SwatchPAY!
  • How to pay with SwatchPAY!
  • For more information

What is SwatchPAY!

Have a SwatchPAY watch! it’s a bit like having a credit card always on your wrist: just bring the watch close to the POS and the payment is made in contactless mode, therefore without physical contact, safely and without additional costs. But how exactly does this “magic” work?

Well, you must know that SwatchPAY watches! they integrate an NFC chip in their dial. NFC (acronym for Near Field Communication ) is a technology that allows secure wireless communication, over a short distance, between two devices that support it. It is the same that underlies the most popular contactless payment systems, including those that work as smartphones and smartwatches.

The association between SwatchPAY! e payment card is secure (payment card details are encrypted and only transmitted to Mastercard or Visa) and 100% free. It can take place both when purchasing the watch (online or at a physical Swatch Store), or at a later time, via the SwatchPAY app! for smartphones or always in a physical Swatch Store. The activation process (tokenization) of your payment card is thus carried out, through which a virtual card is created linked to the real card. Once this is done (typically, the process takes 5-8 minutes) you can immediately start paying with your watch in all businesses that accept contactless payments.

As of this writing, SwatchPAY! is available in Italy, Switzerland, the Netherlands, Russia, Germany, Austria, Portugal, Poland, United Arab Emirates and China, but can be used worldwide. It works with the Mastercard and Visa cards of many institutions, and the list, however, is constantly growing: you can find the updated list on the Swatch website. Only one payment card can be associated with each SwatchPAY! Watch, but nothing prevents you from associating the same card with multiple watches.

Among the main advantages of SwatchPAY !, compared to the payment systems included in smartphones and smartwatches, as already pointed out, is the fact that it does not require batteries to work: the payment function of SwatchPAY! it is in fact independent of the watch battery, which is used only for the timepiece function, and therefore there is no risk of not being able to make the payment. Also they are models are light, fashionable and waterproof, the latter feature is super interesting. For example, on vacation days spent by the sea, you can get out of the water and go directly to the bar by paying with the watch!

SwatchPAY watches!

So what are the watches of the SwatchPAY collection! ? The choice, in this sense, is vast and varied. In fact, there are models suitable for any style, of different sizes and different price ranges, starting from 75 euros.

Going into more detail, there are the 34mm Gent models, the 41mm New Gent models and the 47mm Big Bold models. You can buy them directly online on the Swatch website, in a Swatch Store or at authorized Authorized Resellers. The complete list can be found in the “Select your Store” section of the Swatch website.

In the case of online purchase, just select the model you prefer, indicate whether to activate your SwatchPAY! at the moment or later (through the appropriate drop-down menu) and click on the button with the price. Afterwards, go to the cashier and choose whether to log in with your Swatch account, which you can also create on the spot or to make a quick purchase without logging in. Finally, enter your billing information, choose the shipping method you prefer and complete the payment directly online by following the instructions on the screen. Soon after you will be guided through the process of starting the pairing of the payment card with your new SwatchPAY!

As for the in-store purchase, there isn’t much to explain. Activation of SwatchPAY! – as I will explain shortly – it will be done directly on site through a secure location called SwatchPAY! Box.

How SwatchPAY works!

Now that you know what SwatchPAY is! and what are the watches that support it, I would say to enter the practical side of the matter and to find out more closely how the aforementioned technology works: you will be surprised by how simple it is and, above all, how comfortable it is to use it to make payments!

How to activate SwatchPAY!

As already mentioned, in order to pay with SwatchPAY! you must first associate your card with the watch.

If you have decided to buy your SwatchPAY! online, you can associate the payment card with the watch directly on the Swatch website: all you have to do is select the option Yes, activate now! in the drop-down menu activate your SwatchPAY! now present on the purchase page of your watch, click on the button with the price and proceed with the instructions on the screen. You will first be asked to enter the BIN code of the card, to verify its effective compatibility with the SwatchPAY! System.

Once this is done, you can complete the purchase of the watch and complete the card association procedure directly online. The route is guided and very simple, it will take a few minutes.

At this point, when you receive your watch, download the SwatchPAY app! for Android or iPhone , log in to your account with the credentials you previously created during the online association and activate the payment function by entering the unique code found on the watch packaging. Then an OTP (one-time password) will arrive via SMS and that’s it! It only takes a few steps to complete everything.

If you choose to purchase the watch from a physical Swatch Store or Authorized Reseller, you can complete the SwatchPAY activation process! directly on-site, via the SwatchPAY! Box available in store.

The SwatchPAY! Box present in the Swatch Stores is a BLE (Bluetooth Low Energy) and NFC (Near Field Communication) reader that allows you to complete the association between watch and payment card in a simple and secure way. All data received from the station, in fact, comes from the TSP payment network and is encrypted (Swatch, therefore, cannot read or use your data).

The procedure is very simple: download the SwatchPAY app! for Android or iPhone on your smartphone, create an account by entering your email address and password (you must also open the verification link sent to you via e-mail), press the button for inserting a new card (top right) , enter the card details in the proposed form, press the Continue button, select the watch model you purchased and scan the QR Code by SwatchPAY! Box and then complete the association process with the Swatch Store staff using the SwatchPAY! Box.

You have chosen to activate SwatchPAY! at a later time and not when buying the watch? In this case, you can choose between two different options: use the SwatchPAY app! for smartphones and an Android device equipped with NFC or go to a physical Swatch Store (or other authorized Authorized Reseller) using, also in this case, the SwatchPAY! Box available in store.

As I anticipated, as regards activation from apps with smartphones, an Android device equipped with an NFC chip is required. So just download the SwatchPAY app! from the Google Play Store, start it, create an account or access an existing one, select the activation mode by phone, press the button to add a new card (top right), enter the card details to be associated with the watch, place the smartphone on the watch and, finally, assign a name to the latter, if you want.

As for in-store activation, everything is done via the SwatchPAY! Box as explained a few lines above in relation to the activation of the card during the purchase phase.

If you have any doubts or problems, find out more about the SwatchPAY activation procedure! on the official Swatch website.

How to pay with SwatchPAY!

Once the card is paired with the watch, pay with SwatchPAY! it’s really simple: just make your purchases in any business that supports contactless payments and bring the watch closer to the POS. Within moments, the transaction is completed and the amount to be paid is charged to the card associated with the watch.

There are no hidden fees or charges. As for spending limits, any limits are set by the bank issuing the payment card and not by SwatchPAY !. At the moment, in Italy there is an obligation to enter the PIN on the merchant’s POS for all purchases over 25 euros. After payment, you will also be able to view the transactions made in the SwatchPAY app! for smartphone.

If necessary, you can also suspend or remove the card from the watch. To do this, log into the SwatchPAY app! on your smartphone, locate your card and select the Suspend virtual card option if you want to temporarily suspend the card, or the Delete the virtual card option, to completely eliminate the token and the association between watch and card (which therefore does not will be more usable for payments with SwatchPAY!, if not after making a new association of the same).

For more information

If you need more information about SwatchPAY! and how it works, I invite you to consult the official website and, more specifically, the FAQ page, where you can find the answers to all the most frequently asked questions about this payment system.