MCX's CurrentC Platform Will Launch As Planned

DALLAS — Merchant Customer Exchange's (MCX) CurrentC mobile wallet payment platform will launch as planned in early 2015 despite a recent hack attack, stressed CEO Dekkers Davidson during a media-only press conference Wednesday.

According to Davidson, hackers only stole e-mail information from customers, as opposed to more personal information, such as credit card numbers. He added that the hack attack did not take place in the cloud, where more important information is held, and CurrentC's mobile app was unaffected.

"It's unfortunate that some people think it's cool to hack a system," Davidson said during the conference call. "But we built the CurrentC platform expecting attacks. This will not impact the rollout of CurrentC."

When asked why CurrentC was targeted, Davison acknowledged he could only speculate. But he did say CurrentC — a competitor to Apple Pay — provides a payment alternative for both retailers and consumers.

"When you poke at a large ecosystem like that, there will be attacks," said Davidson. "We will learn from it. It will not slow us down."

CurrentC allows consumers to pay for retail goods from their smartphones. It does not require near field communications technology and can be used on both Android and iOS phones, both much different than Apple Pay, which launched publicly on Oct. 20.

Dallas-based MCX is a consortium created by many retailers, including 7-Eleven Inc. According to Davidson, CurrentC is currently being tested in several retail locations throughout the country, but he would not reveal the names of the retailers or locations, citing competitive reasons.

Davidson also debunked several media reports that stated retail members of the MCX consortium face fines if they accept Apple Pay.

"Merchants can do as they see fit. They can choose to offer Apple Pay if they choose," relayed Davidson. "It's simply not true. There are no fines."