Visa said in a press release that Visa’s announcement of a June deal to purchase the token services and ticketing arm of Rambus – previously known as Bell ID and Ecebs LTD – was finalized on 22nd October.
Visa said in the release, “The acquisition strengthens Visa’s tokenization capabilities beyond card-based payments on the Visa network, to those using domestic card networks, account-based and real-time payments, extending the security and convenience of tokens to more transactions than ever before.” It also facilitates Visa to reach new markets, including the 28 countries where Rambus operates.
A new security technology, the Visa Token Service replaces account numbers with a unique digital identifier called a token. The technology allows payments to be processed without exposing actual account information.
Originally, Visa seals a deal to buy the token services and ticketing business of chipmaker Rambus in June. The payments company said at the time that the combination of its extant tokenization offerings with the local and account tokenization enabled by Rambus will help to secure payments of all types done across the globe.
Visa has offered tokenization through VTS for card-based payments on its network long back. Now, the addition of Rambus’ token technology will help Visa extend to transactions beyond Visa’s cards, including account-to-account transactions, payments done on domestic card networks and payments done across real-time payment systems.
The assets gained in the acquisition help banks control or suspend tokenized bank account numbers, limit token use to specific channels and set spending limits.
The token services already reach 100 markets, which report for 90 percent of Visa’s total payments volume. Additionally, a mandate to follow PCI-DSS (Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard) guidelines and protect cardholder’s data is accelerating the tokenization market growth, as per a report by Value Market Research.
TS Anil, Visa’s senior vice president and global head of payment products and platforms, said that the combination allows Visa to build on existing capabilities “rather than starting from scratch.”
Naira Shekhawat has been into Content Writing just after completing her Graduation in English Literature. Her love for words has won her many accolades in her respective jobs ever since. Naira covers business sections for VMR News. She is a traveller by heart and loves writing on food blogs as a freelancer.