SmartphonesSamsung Pay Now Supports Union Coop Hypermarkets & Lulu Malls

Samsung Pay is spreading across the United Arab Emirates, as it’s now supported in Lulu and Union Coop Hypermarket shopping malls. This allows shoppers to enjoy a secure and convenient way to make cashless payments and handle their mobile wallet in more hypermarkets in the Middle East. The only problem as of now is that using Samsung Pay at Lulu and Union Coop Hypermarket is currently available only to Visa cardholders and there’s still no word as to when the same benefits will be extended to other cards.

One of the major highlights of Samsung pay is that it works with existing terminals, even old ones that are not NFC-ready, so it doesn’t require merchants to make changes to their hardware in order to support it. Samsung Pay works with both Near Field Communication (NFC) and Magnetic Secure Transmission (MST) technologies, offering a simple and secure payment solution to satisfy both customers and retailers. Unlike Android Pay, however, Samsung Pay is Samsung’s proprietary mobile payment solution and it’s only compatible with select Samsung smartphones and smartwatches. Supported Samsung phones include the Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8 Plus, Galaxy S7 series, Galaxy S6 lineup, and the Galaxy Note 5. Wearables compatible with the service include the Gear S2 and Gear S3 families, though more will likely be added to the ecosystem in the near future.

Customers who own a compatible Samsung smartphone or smartwatch can use Samsung Pay at any location where they can tap or swipe their credit card. Samsung Pay is still gaining ground in the UAE, but its expansion to Lulu and Union Coop Hypermarket malls should entice more Samsung device owners with Visa cards to take advantage of this mobile payment solution. The newly added hypermarket stores will feature branded Samsung Pay checkout counters to indicate that they support the service. More details on the expansion of Samsung Pay will likely follow later this year.