Birmingham innovators launch next step in contactless payment

CUSTOMERS can now pay and collect rewards for their loyalty without needing to touch their wallet or phone thanks to the launch of a Birmingham-based innovation.

More than 400 retailers have signed up to Droplet’s Zero Touch scheme, which chief executive Steffan Aquarone said it makes the customer feel “as if you own the place”.

Zero Touch enables people to check-in to places automatically when they arrive, with their face and name immediately appearing on the point of sale screen so they can be charged for their purchase and given their stamps.

Mr Aquarone said: “Imagine being able to walk in to your pub, restaurant, coffee shop or clothing retailer and getting treated like a star – greeted by name, given personalised treats, and having everything charged seamlessly to your account as if you owned the place.

“Thanks to Zero Touch and Droplet this is now a reality and we are currently rolling it out to our merchants, which currently number just over 400 spread across 10 UK cities, including Birmingham.”

The transaction is completed securely and an instant push notification is sent to tell them how much money they’ve been charged.

He added: “The accuracy of the technology means that in busy environments merchants can see exactly who is in the queue, charge people instantly and serve customers faster.

“In more laid-back places users can come and go as they please and there’s no need to wait for the bill or interrupt the experience to pay. It is the first time that anything like this has been introduced and promises to be a real game-changer.”

Droplet was founded in Birmingham in 2012 and has been used in more than 130,000 transactions.