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Monday 20 March 2017 BUSINESS
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            Smart Money:

                  Coming soon, paying your tab without giving your credit card



            KEN SWEET                                                                                                           send  each  other  money
            AP Business Writer                                                                                                  for  free  via  their  phones
            NEW  YORK  (AP)  —  It’s  1                                                                                         mean you can quickly pay
            a.m.  You’ve  had  a  few                                                                                           a friend back for a drink or
            too  many  at  a  crowded                                                                                           divide  the  dinner  check
            bar  and  walk  out  without                                                                                        instead of just hoping that
            paying the tab. Your credit                                                                                         someday  soon  the  friend
            card and driver’s license sit                                                                                       will take a turn.
            behind  the  cash  register,                                                                                        Those  have  the  benefit  of
            leaving  your  personal  info                                                                                       working at any restaurant,
            widely  accessible  while                                                                                           but  don’t  have  the  ability
            you sleep off those vodka                                                                                           to  split  bills  until  after  the
            tonics.                                                                                                             fact.
            There’s  a  new  option  that                                                                                       The new bar tab option on
            might lessen the pain. Not                                                                                          Qkr is fairly straightforward.
            the  hangover  pain  —  for                                                                                         Customers  can  open  the
            that,  you’ll  need  aspirin.                                                                                       Qkr or the bar’s app, and
            But if you’ve ever left your                                                                                        set up a tab, entering their
            credit card at a bar by mis-                                                                                        credit  card  information  if
            take, or spent several min-                                                                                         they  hadn’t  already  done
            utes trying to flag down a                                                                                          so. Once the tab is ready,
            harried bartender to close   This photo demonstrates some of the new features of the Qkr with Masterpass mobile payments   customers would get a ta-
            you  out,  there  may  be  a   service. The upgrade being rolled out during the summer of 2017 will let people open, manage   ble  number,  which  they’d
            new option.                  and close their tabs at participating bars and taverns completely through their phones, without   give to the bartender each
            An  upgrade  being  rolled   having to hand over a credit card.                      (Courtesy of Mastercard via AP)  time they order a drink.
            out this summer to Master-                                                                                          When they’re ready to go,
            card’s  mobile  payments     existing  Qkr  mobile  pay-  Vita also cited Mastercard  While  Mastercard  is  rolling   customers  can  close  out
            service will let people open,   ment service.             survey  data  that  it  takes  out  the  feature,  Qkr  will   their tabs in the app. There
            manage  and  close  their    “We  heard  from  so  many   on  average  12  to  15  min-  work with any major credit   are  options  to  add  other
            tabs  at  participating  bars   bars and pubs who always   utes to close out a bill, time  card  as  long  as  the  mer-  people  to  the  tab,  much
            and  taverns  completely     have  a  number  of  credit   that could be used to serve  chant accepts it.           like how a person can split
            through their phones, with-  cards left at the end of the   more  tables  and  custom-  Popular  apps  like  Venmo,   a fare on Uber, as well as
            out having to hand over a    evening,  and  we  thought,   ers.                        Square  Cash  and  bank-     the  ability  to  pay  for  in-
            credit card. The Open Tab    ‘we  know  how  to  address   The  service  will  be  free  to  specific versions like Chase   dividual  drinks  or  pay  for
            feature,  available  in  the   this,’”  said  Betty  DeVita,   customers and the service  QuickPay  have  already   rounds of drinks.q
            U.S. and the U.K., will be an   the business head of Mas-  will cost the same for bars  changed  the  dynamic  in
            upgrade  to  Mastercard’s    tercard’s Qkr platform. De-  and  restaurants  as  their  how some people are pay-
                                                                      normal  credit  card  pro-   ing for things. The payment
                                                                      cessing  costs,  DeVita  said.  services  that  let  people
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