BUSINESS

CIBC backs suretap mobile payments app

The Canadian Press Published Tuesday, June 23, 2015 11:42AM EDT Last Updated Tuesday, June 23, 2015 12:03PM EDT

A smart phone user checks their bank account with an online banking app from CIBC in Ottawa on Friday, April 1, 2011. (Sean Kilpatrick / THE CANADIAN PRESS)

A smart phone user checks their bank account with an online banking app in Ottawa on Friday, April 1, 2011. (Sean Kilpatrick / THE CANADIAN PRESS)

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TORONTO -- The Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce (TSX:CM) has joined Canada's major wireless carriers in backing the Suretap mobile payments app.

Rogers (TSX:RCI.B), Bell (TSX:BCE), Telus (TSX:T), Koodo and Virgin are all offering the mobile wallet across a range of Android and BlackBerry phones.

CIBC says its customers will be able to use Suretap to add their Visa or MasterCard credit cards to their smartphones.

That makes CIBC the first of the five biggest Canadian banks to announce its support of Suretap.

CIBC was also the first of the major banks to announce that its customers can conduct mobile banking via the Apple Watch.

The Suretap wallet uses near field communication (NFC) technology to make payments with a smartphone.

CIBC also has its own mobile payments app, which allows customers to charge purchases of up to $100 to a credit card.

"Our partnership with Suretap gives our clients choice when it comes to paying with their smartphone and builds on our commitment to delivering the payments solutions that reflect where are our clients' needs are today and where they are going in the future," Todd Roberts, senior vice-president of cards and payments innovation at CIBC, said in a statement.