Wearable Paytech Provider MuchBetter Launches Contactless Payment Ring for Free in Italy

Payments
25.06.2024 11:05 am

MuchBetter, the wearable payments tech pioneer, has today launched a free contactless ceramic payments ring in Italy giving consumers more convenient, stylish and enjoyable ways to pay by removing initial cost barriers to wearable tech.

In a disruptive move, the ring is available for free, provided customers load it with €100 through the MuchBetter digital wallet app to spend as and when they wish, challenging companies currently selling the same product for upwards of €100. MuchBetter’s contactless payment ring functions just like any other payment device, and can be used to make payments all over the world, anywhere that Mastercard is accepted, just by tapping the ring on the contactless payment terminal.

Available through the MuchBetter website, customers simply need to enter their ring size, and pay a €5.99 delivery charge to get their hands on the ultra-stylish ring. Once customers receive the ring, they can simply tap and hold it near their NFC-enabled smartphone to automatically detect and pair the ring via MuchBetter’s new ‘Knock To Activate’ functionality in its digital wallet app that can be downloaded for free.

Taking contactless convenience to the next level, and unlike other contactless-enabled wearable items, the MuchBetter ring has no battery, never needs to be charged, doesn’t rely on a phone for use, and is also water-resistant and durable.

Customers can load the ring with funds at their own convenience, receive instant transaction notifications, view spending histories, and instantly freeze the ring from making payments if it is lost or stolen, with no need to contact their bank first. Customers can also load their wallet and wearable item through bank or card account transfers, and cash vouchers purchased in physical stores.

Driven by the belief that consumers deserve the freedom to choose to use any object they want to pay or for identification, MuchBetter’s ring is powered by an award-winning IoT platform that provides an end-to-end service to securely deliver data into everyday wearables and turn them into tokenised wearables. The technology connects an entire ecosystem, serving as a centrepiece between banks, product creators, retailers, chip manufacturers and service providers. The MuchBetter ring is connected via a secure provision to the consumer’s MuchBetter payment account using their Android or iOS smartphone, ensuring that consumers do not need to share their payment details with a third party.

Unlike active wearable technology such as smartwatches with limited battery lives, tokenised wearable technology – such as MuchBetter’s ring – allows virtually any form factor to be inserted with a chip and turned into a contactless payment or digital ID token. By offering contactless payment and digital ID verification through one ring that goes wherever the user goes, MuchBetter is drastically speeding up entry and transaction times with all transactions encrypted and secured through tokenisation.

From a business perspective, the MuchBetter ring also provides a much richer consumer interaction experience, with consumers able to tap their ring against their enabled smartphone device to receive offers, upgrade their account, and more. This delivers huge benefits to brands looking to interact more frequently with their clients, and also streamline costs and incentivise more daily transactions.

MuchBetter’s fast-growing momentum comes amid an exciting time for wearables as they break into the mainstream, with the Italian contactless market one of the biggest in Europe. The value of payments made with a contactless payment or ‘tap to pay’ method in Italy increased by over 30% from 2022 to reach €240 billion or $260 billion in transaction value in 2023, with phone or wearable payments comprising over €16 billion.

Despite the growing popularity of contactless payment, Italy’s cash usage remains high. According to the Bank of Italy, nearly 70% of consumer payments are still made with cash, which causes problems for merchants due to cash management, transporting it to the bank and security. This is where MuchBetter’s payment ring can offer even more convenience to both merchants and consumers, by enabling users to store their cash vouchers onto their ring and use them for contactless payments. Following the launch of the ring in Italy, it will also be available in Germany, Austria, the UK, Ireland and Poland.

Tom Lenihan, Director of Marketing at MuchBetter, says: “We are yet to meet someone who hasn’t been impressed with our payment ring product, and we can’t wait to get it on the hands of as many of our Italian customers as we can. Of course we could charge large upfront fees for this standard of product like the competition, but MuchBetter, as the name suggests, exists to ensure we do things in a MuchBetter way, whether it’s the technology itself, or its pricing. With other payment rings typically costing upwards of €100, we’re essentially giving the ring away for free, which is a major disruption to the standard wearable item business model where customers have to first purchase an item and then load it with funds.”

“By putting these innovative payment devices in the hands, literally, of thousands of people across Italy, MuchBetter is bringing a highly desirable and aspirational payment product to the mass market and extending the convenience of contactless into customers’ daily lives even further. With our payment ring, there is no need to search for your card or phone to make a contactless payment anymore, and there’s no need to worry about running out of battery. We believe that payment rings and similar wearables will replace phone and contactless card payments in a matter of time, and at MuchBetter we want to be at the forefront of empowering consumers with even more freedom and flexibility in how they want to pay.”

MuchBetter offers a wide variety of digital payment services including a digital wallet and payments gateway, wearables including keyrings, watches, jewellery, and the MuchBetter prepaid Mastercard. MuchBetter’s long-standing partnership with technology company Mastercard was instrumental in enabling Mastercard guests attending the 2024 UEFA Champions League final to use contactless vegan ‘leather’ key fobs to make payments in and around Istanbul's Atatürk Olympic Stadium, whilst providing guests with access control in the venue, including cloakroom access and half-time food and beverages via mobile readers.

Backed by a highly innovative technology division and with support from renowned tech investor Rtekk, MuchBetter is now making moves to bring stylish and cutting-edge wearable tech items to mainstream mass markets, at a scale and cost never before seen to disrupt established industries and product lines.