PRINCETON JUNCTION, N.J., March 30, 2015 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- As U.S. issuers, merchants, acquirers and processors continue planning for the approaching October 2015 EMV chip fraud liability shifts, many stakeholders may ask: "What is the least complex way to deploy chip for my organization?" To help merchants and acquirers develop their strategies for implementation, payment network members of the EMV Migration Forum have come together to produce a document outlining minimum requirements for chip deployment.
The EMV Minimum Requirements Matrix, an easy-to-use Excel document, can be downloaded at http://www.emv-connection.com/minimum-emv-chip-card-and-terminal-requirements-u-s/.
The EMV Minimum Requirements Matrix is intended for U.S. issuers, merchants, acquirers, processors and vendors who are planning deployments of EMV chip programs in the U.S. Its primary goal is to help stakeholders understand the minimum requirements of chip deployment for the payment networks reflected in the document. The document provides a tool for stakeholders to use as a baseline from which they can work with their partners to determine their best strategy to meet requirements as the fraud liability shift approaches.
"Many issuers and merchants have asked for information regarding minimum EMV requirements as a starting point for their chip deployments and as guidance for meeting the October 1, 2015 fraud liability shift date," said Randy Vanderhoof, director of the EMV Migration Forum. "This resource is another example of our EMV Migration Forum members coming together to provide sought-after chip implementation resources to the payments industry."
The matrix focuses on the minimum card and terminal requirements for payment networks American Express, Armed Forces Financial Network (AFFN), China UnionPay, Discover, Jeanie, MasterCard, NYCE, PULSE, STAR and Visa in the context of the U.S. market and fraud liability shift. These participants have documented their respective minimum card and terminal configurations for EMV compliance. While the document addresses minimum requirements, decisions regarding deployment of chip technology will differ by stakeholder and involve a balancing of considerations, such as business needs and preferences, deployment timing, complexity and associated initial and future costs.
The EMV Migration Forum is made up of 175 member organizations including global payments networks, financial institutions, merchants, processors, acquirers, U.S. debit networks, industry associations and industry suppliers. The Forum just completed its 13th member meeting last week in Anaheim, California. Forum meetings provide members with the opportunity to share perspectives, report lessons learned and ask questions of other industry colleagues in the midst of chip migrations. For membership information, visit http://www.emv-connection.com/emv-migration-forum/membership-levels/.
The EMV Migration Forum has a variety of resources available for all stakeholders across the payments industry that are interested in furthering their education and understanding of EMV chip technology in the U.S. Resources including the infographic, "EMV Chip Cards: The Future of Payments," the "EMV 101: Fundamentals of EMV Chip Payments" webinar and the EMV Connection Press Room are available at www.emv-connection.com.
About U.S. EMV Chip Migration
Commonly used globally in place of magnetic stripe, EMV chip technology helps to reduce card fraud in a face-to-face card-present environment; provides global interoperability; and enables safer transactions across contact and contactless channels. Chip implementation was initiated in the U.S. market in 2011 and 2012 when American Express, Discover, MasterCard and Visa announced their roadmaps for supporting a chip-based payments infrastructure. Acquirer processor readiness mandates to support EMV were established for 2013, with liability shifts for managing fraud risk in a face-to-face environment set for 2015.
About the EMV Migration Forum
The EMV Migration Forum is a cross-industry body focused on supporting the EMV chip implementation steps required for global and regional payment networks, issuers, processors, merchants, and consumers to help ensure a successful introduction of more secure chip technology in the United States. The focus of the Forum is to address topics that require some level of industry cooperation and/or coordination to migrate successfully to chip technology in the United States. For more information on the EMV Migration Forum, please visit http://www.emv-connection.com/emv-migration-forum/