CurrentC Planning Test Launch With Dunkin’ Donuts

DALLAS — Merchant Customer Exchange’s (MCX) CurrentC mobile payment solution will launch a test of its product in Dunkin’ Donuts locations in August.

MCX is a consortium of several companies, including 7-Eleven Inc. in the convenience store industry, as well as other large retailers including CVS Health Corp. and Wal-Mart Stores Inc. MCX was founded in 2012 as a way for retailers to find an alternative for allegedly high interchange fees charged by credit card and debit card purveyors.

According to NACS, the Association for Convenience and Fuel Retailing, Dunkin’ Donuts will run a CurrentC trial run in select locations following successful beta testing by store employees. A full-scale rollout is scheduled for the fall.

MCX is a member of Conexxus, which addresses technology standards to improve business practices, reduce costs and increase productivity for the convenience and fuel retailing industry.

"CurrentC is becoming a viable choice for merchants wishing to push into the mobile wallet space, and a great opportunity to incent consumers to use more cost effective payment methods such as ACH [automated clearing house],” Gray Taylor, executive director of Conexxus, told NACS Online. "Retailers of any scale will have to look into alternative payment channels, such as CurrentC, to be competitive."

Dunkin’ Donuts and Baskin Robbins also announced their customers will be able to use rewards programs via CurrentC.

As CSNews Online reported on July 27, Dallas-based MCX plans to CurrentC formally introduce CurrentC in the third quarter, with a national rollout of the mobile payment solution shortly after.

Dunkin’ Donuts is a division of Canton, Mass.-based Dunkin’ Brands Group Inc.