Americans may soon be carrying “smart” or EMV cards in their wallets, according to “Get Smart: 7 things you need to know about EMV,” an article by Jay Morris that appears in the latest issue of The Federal Credit Union magazine. The new credit cards have a computer chip embedded in them that takes the place of the magnetic stripe that has been in use for decades.
The EMV chip (named for Europay, MasterCard and Visa, the three big card networks that are pushing for adoption of the new standard) brings with it the added benefits of greater fraud protection, including the use of cryptography.
Morris interviewed early adopters among credit unions, including United Nations Federal Credit Union, the very first financial institution in the U.S. to roll out an EMV credit card. These early adopters have members who frequently travel to Europe, where EMV cards are widely accepted and magnetic stripe cards are being phased out.
In the article, Morris details the seven things credit union leaders need to know about smart cards.
To read more, download a PDF of the article, or visit the digital edition of the September-October 2013 issue of The Federal Credit Union.
This is the second TFCU article Morris has written about technology and credit unions. Last year, he wrote “In the Year 2022,” which describes the future of mobile banking.
The Federal Credit Union magazine is published by the National Association of Federal Credit Unions and has a circulation of over 6,500 credit union executives, managers and volunteers.