Visa to launch a 'digital wallet' this fall

Visa said it will launch an electronic payments platform this fall designed to simplify and secure online, mobile and social networking transactions. The product will also allow consumers to shop across channels without abandoning an electronic shopping cart.

Consumers will be able to control personal wallet privacy settings, user access and purchase amounts. The service will also include an opt-in merchant offers feature, which will allow companies to send coupons and promotions to consumers, said Visa.

Consumers will be able to shop using the digital wallet by entering an email address, login name and password, instead of a billing address, account number and expiration date, said Visa. The platform will use multiple accounts from both Visa and other companies, support near-field communication, and deliver a range of transaction services for various commerce scenarios, the company said in a statement.

“The way people connect and transact across the globe is changing dramatically, driven by two forces, the continued secular shift from paper-based to electronic payments and secondly the wide-spread adoption of mobile and Internet technology,” said Joe Saunders, chairman and CEO of Visa, on an investors' call.

Visa is working with several financial institutions and companies on the platform, including Barclaycard US, Nordstrom, PNC Bank and US Bank.