Walmart launching chip-enabled store-brand MasterCard

New York -- Walmart announced in a post on its corporate blog that its store-brand MasterCard holders can expect to receive a new chip-enabled card in the "next few weeks." The discounter said it is among the first retailers to implement chip technology as a more secure payment means for cardholders. It also noted in the post that Sam's CLub introduced a chip-enabled MasterCard in June. Both cards prompt customers not to swipe – but to insert and briefly leave the card in the payment terminal, so the card’s embedded chip can be accessed.



Walmart installed EMV-capable terminals in stores about eight years ago. The terminals are now activated in more than 4,600 stores, including all Sam’s Club locations. Terminals in the remaining U.S. stores will be activated before the end of the year.



"When the cards are used at chip-enabled terminals, the enhanced security features used for authorization help confirm that the card being presented is authentic and make itmore difficult to duplicate, increasing protection against counterfeit fraud. The new cobranded card can be used anywhere MasterCard is accepted around the world," wrote Mike Cook, Walmart’s senior VP of finance and assistant treasurer, and Chris McWilton, MasterCard’s president of North America, in the blog posting.



In another new feature of the Walmart co-branded MasterCard, cardholders will receive $5 back on every $500 they spend. They’ll also save 5 cents per gallon of gas at participating Walmart gas stations and 15 cents during Walmart’s “Great Gas Rollback” promotion running now through Sept. 8.