Ingenico’s Denis Predicts the Future of EMV in North America

(Scroll down to access the audio interview)

Don’t doubt it for a second: EMV is happening in the United States. Combined with the incentive of long-term fraud reduction, the short-term bonuses recently offered by MasterCard and Visa (leeway on PCI compliance, e.g.) are pushing this migration forward. It’s an opportunity for payment systems specialists to step up and help bridge a gap that perhaps should have been closed years ago. One such expert is Ingenico, which has been working with merchants for nearly 30 years, 14 of which involved a keen focus on the importance of EMV to POS security.

Operator of more EMV-compliant terminals than anyone else anywhere, Ingenico has also shown itself to have a particularly loud voice in the security standard migration discussion. Since EMV’s inception, the Paris-based firm has been working to get payments players on board with the new system. And recently, the company was given a seat on the EMVCo Board of Advisors, as one of the first-ever Technical Associates to serve that key group.

It makes sense, then, that a paramount player in the European move to EMV might also have a tremendous impact on the transition effort in North America. Already in Canada, for example, the firm has partnered with ACT Canada, led by President and CEO Catherine Johnston, to provide hands-on guidance as that country upgrades its infrastructure nationwide.

To explain how the partnership between Ingenico and ACT Canada can influence the global conversation, Johnston and Ingenico North America President Thierry Denis spoke with MPD’s Karen Webster. The trio discussed the greatest challenges posed by EMV adoption; unpacked the chicken-and-egg problem presented by the need for getting both consumers and merchants on board with the new standard; and took a step towards evaluating EMV’s impact on mobile adoption in the United States.

Of course, one day’s conversation won’t be enough to perfect an EMV roadmap for the U.S.; replacing credit cards, terminals, and infrastructure will take a decade, perhaps more. But expert commentary is the correct place to start in sketching out that map, and Ingenico is an expert on EMV. So let’s start there, and then figure out what other questions we need to be asking between now and the year 2020.

Part One: Catherine Johnston – ACT Canada Overview 

Part Two: Thierry Denis – Ingenico’s Role in EMV Migration 

Part Three: Group discussion – Merchants, consumers, networks, NFC and U.S. adoption

Click here for the downloadable transcript.

Related Article: Ingenico Chairman & CEO Philippe Lazare Comments on 2011 Results

 Thierry Denis
President, Ingenico North America

Currently, Thierry Denis serves as President of Ingenico North America reporting to the CEO and Chairman of Ingenico, Inc. Mr. Denis has overall responsibility for driving the development and execution of Ingenico’s business strategy in the United States and Canada. He has been in his current position since April 2011.

Mr. Denis has been with Ingenico for over 21 years, 17 of which he spent in the Asia Pacific region. He managed the Australian subsidiary of Ingenico, with over 60 staff members based in offices in Sydney and Melbourne with overall responsibility for the company’s operations in Australia and New Zealand. Mr. Denis has a strong sales and technical background and has been successful in expanding the international business of Ingenico. He has served in a range of senior executive positions within the company, including R&D Manager and Software Director for Asia Pacific. In 2004, Mr. Denis was appointed Director of the South East Asian region based in Singapore where he remained until 2006 when he returned to Australia to take up his position as Managing Director.

 Catherine Johnston 
President & CEO, ACT Canada
Chairman, International Smart Card Associations Network

Catherine Johnston is the President and Chief Executive Officer of ACT Canada, the stakeholder association focused on secure payment, secure identity management and other advanced applications. She has been with the association for 21 years. She is also the Chair of the International Smart Card Associations Network, and founder of the Women in Payments Networking group. Catherine is a founding member and past Vice-Chairman of the Stakeholders’ Advisory Council of the Canadian Payments Association.

As the president of ACT Canada, she works with merchants, issuers, acquirers, processors, regulators, consumers and other payments stakeholders, providing a neutral forum where insights can be shared.

Over the past six years, much of her focus has been on EMV, as Canada moved to meet liability shift dates in 2011. During that time she co-chaired the Merchant Strategic Leadership team, helping retailers access EMV information for the development of their strategic plans. Today the team has added mobile payment, contactless and NFC to their mandate.

Catherine now also focusses on EMV across North America, mobile commerce and other emerging payment issues and opportunities. She is a popular speaker at conferences around the world and is the driving force behind Cardware, Canada’s premiere payments insight conference.