Visa opens new innovation centre

Visa has opened a new innovation centre at its European headquarters in London to act as an “immersive environment” where the payments firm can work side-by-side with financial institutions, merchants and other partners to develop the next generation of payment solutions.

The 10,764 square foot space will enable Visa to host partners and clients from across Europe to collaboration on new ways to pay, as well as engage with visitors on applications including the Internet of Things in connected car and connected home environments, such as paying for car insurance or placing a grocery order from a refrigerator.

Visitors will also experience the future of retail using virtual reality to pick the right seat for an upcoming Formula E race and biometric authentication to pay for tickets.

Rajesh Agrawal, deputy mayor of London for business, said: “London is a global fintech leader because we have been able to combine our traditional strength in financial services with our growing talent for tech and our innovative and entrepreneurial spirit. As a successful fintech entrepreneur myself, I understand that quite often businesses need a little bit of help to turn the kernel of a good idea into something truly transformative. I am therefore delighted that Visa is launching this new innovation centre in London, bolstering our flourishing global tech and fintech reputation and proving that London is open to great ideas and innovation.”

Visa’s new innovation centre in London joins its global network of studios located in technology hotspots including Berlin, Dubai, Miami, San Francisco, Singapore, Sao Paulo and Tel Aviv.

“What makes the approach we take in our innovation centres unique is that they're all about collaborating with clients to solve real world, consumer pain points or business problems using digital solutions,” said Jim McCarthy, executive vice president for innovation and strategic partnerships at Visa. “We’ve had great success doing this in our centres globally and are very excited to be opening a state-of-the art facility in Europe.”