Merchant Customer Exchange
| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Mobile payments |
| Founded | August 15, 2012 |
| Fate | Technology acquired by JPMorgan Chase in March 2017 |
| Headquarters | United States |
Area served | United States |
Key people | Dekkers Davidson (CEO) |
| Products | CurrentC mobile payment platform |
Merchant Customer Exchange (MCX) was a U.S.-based enterprise formed by a coalition of American retailers with the purpose of creating a merchant-controlled mobile payment platform known as "CurrentC." This collaborative initiative was made public on August 15, 2012.
The leadership of MCX comprised prominent merchants including 7-Eleven, Alon Brands, Best Buy, CVS Health, Darden Restaurants, HMSHost, Hy-Vee, Lowe's, Michaels, Publix, Sears Holdings, Shell Oil Products US, Sunoco, Target Corporation, and Walmart. Collectively, these founding retailers represented approximately $1 trillion in yearly sales revenue.
In March 2017, the technology developed by MCX was acquired by JPMorgan Chase to be integrated into its Chase Pay digital wallet system.
CurrentC
The primary offering from MCX was CurrentC, a mobile payment solution. This platform operated via a smartphone application featuring a digital wallet. To complete a purchase, customers either scanned a QR code displayed on the merchant’s terminal or had the cashier scan a QR code presented on their phone screen. Rather than transmitting sensitive financial information online, the process utilized tokenization; these tokens were translated by the financial institution to initiate payments through methods such as the Automated Clearing House (ACH), gift cards, private label charge cards, or other payment forms, subsequently charging the consumer.
Beyond payments, the CurrentC app provided functionalities for locating participating retailers, presenting available coupons, showing loyalty program information, and managing receipts by leveraging transaction data alongside device information.
The system’s design was attributed to Joseph Corcoran and supplied to MCX under a nondisclosure agreement based on his patented invention. Backend processing services were initially contracted to Gemalto. However, shortly after Dekkers Davidson assumed the role of MCX CEO, he opted to pursue an agreement with Paydiant—a company with which he previously had affiliations. This decision led to a breach of contract with Gemalto and culminated in a court ruling awarding Gemalto damages exceeding $40 million. Paydiant, a Boston-based startup now owned by PayPal, became involved following this shift.
CurrentC deliberately excluded support for all credit cards to help merchants avoid paying interchange fees. Instead, transactions could directly debit consumers’ bank accounts through the ACH network.
At launch, CurrentC utilized QR codes alongside Bluetooth Low Energy beacons and geolocation technology—differentiating itself from competitors that primarily relied on near-field communication (NFC). The platform entered public beta testing in Columbus, Ohio in September 2015. The pilot program at Target locations concluded on June 30, 2016.
Reception
The initial soft launch of CurrentC sparked considerable debate. Observers accused MCX members of collusion by attempting to block rival contactless payment options based on near-field communications, such as Apple Pay and Google Pay, both supported by firms within the wireless sector, from being accepted at their outlets. Retailers like Best Buy and Walmart, part of MCX, openly declared they would not endorse Apple Pay in their stores. Meanwhile, in late October 2014, CVS Health and Rite Aid quietly deactivated NFC payment capabilities altogether.
Although The New York Times suggested that this restriction was contractually mandated and could lead to penalties for noncompliance, MCX CEO Dekkers Davidson refuted this, emphasizing that individual retailers retained the freedom to choose which payment platforms to accept. However, he hinted at a technological constraint that currently prevented the simultaneous use of CurrentC alongside other contactless systems. Subsequently, Davidson acknowledged that MCX had requested its members to maintain exclusivity for CurrentC for several months to allow the platform some "breathing room," but denied issuing any direct instructions to CVS to cease accepting other NFC-based payment methods. On October 30, 2014, regional grocery chain and MCX participant Meijer publicly stated it had no intention of disabling competing contactless payment services.
Concerns were also raised regarding the platform's security: on October 29, 2014, it was disclosed that unauthorized access had occurred involving some email addresses belonging to pilot program participants. The exact number of affected individuals was not revealed. Additionally, CurrentC collects consumer data for merchant use; its privacy policy indicates the app may gather location information to facilitate transactions, protected health information during medical-related payments, and details about the device and operating system running the application. The service also has an opt-out option for collecting data related to marketing and loyalty initiatives.
In reaction to security worries and perceived anti-competitive behavior by MCX members, a loosely coordinated movement emerged on the iOS App Store and Google Play Store, where users posted negative reviews and low ratings for the CurrentC app as a form of protest.
On April 28, 2015, Best Buy announced it would begin accepting Apple Pay at its stores, stating that "today's consumers have many different ways to spend their money and we want to give our customers as many options as possible in how they pay for goods and services at Best Buy." Later, on August 11, 2015, Rite Aid reversed its earlier stance by reinstating contactless payment readers across all 4,600 U.S. locations, enabling customers once again to use Apple Pay and Google Wallet as payment methods.
Deactivation
In May 2016, MCX declared a delay in the nationwide launch of the CurrentC app. Approximately one month afterward, the company notified its beta testers via email that their accounts would be removed by the conclusion of June. The message conveyed, "Our beta testing phase will end, and further releases of CurrentC are postponed as of June 28, 2016. Consequently, June 28 will mark the final day for transactions through CurrentC."
An MCX representative commented that no specific future schedules or plans regarding the application have been disclosed yet, but the company is eager to review and gain insights from the data gathered during the beta testing period.