U.S. EMV Migration One Year Later

It has been just more than one year since the EMV liability shift for retail stores was put in place. During this time there has been significant disruption at point of sale (POS). In the retail store environment, consumers and retailers have grappled, respectively, with learning to use new EMV cards and implementing new terminals to take them. Unfortunately, the EMV migration process for both these sets of stakeholders has not been smooth, marked by episodic EMV card portfolio pushes and uneven adoption by both large and small merchants. Additionally, some retailers have questioned the logic of how EMV has been implemented. Meanwhile, smartphone providers and retailers alike have rolled out mobile wallets as EMV alternatives. 

This report looks at how implementation has proceeded for merchants and issuers and the expectations for the next retailer EMV milestone in 2017 – gasoline/fuel stations.

Key questions addressed in this report:

• How has EMV card issuance proceeded since the retailer liability shift, and what is the forecast for the next 12-24 months?
• What challenges exist for continued debit EMV issuance?
• How has merchant adoption of EMV terminals progressed at both chain stores and smaller retailers?
• How have merchants reacted to EMV implementation in the past year?
• What have the card networks done to alleviate the stress felt by merchants on the issue of chargeback EMV liability?
• How are retailers positioning their wallets as EMV disrupts POS?
• Will mobile proximity payments grow as an EMV alternative?
• How has the retail gasoline/fuel industry begun to prepare for a 2017 EMV implementation?

Companies Mentioned: American Express, Bed Bath & Beyond, B&R Supermarket, Chase, Cheesecake Factory, Costco, CPI Card Group, CVS, Discover, Dollar Tree, EMVCO, ExxonMobil, FIS, Google Express, HEB Grocery Company, Home Depot, JC Penney, Kohl’s, Kroger, Macy’s, Mastercard, Michael’s, Oberthur Technologies, Pep Boys, PetSmart, Petco, Phillips 66, P97 Networks, SAP, Safeway, Shell, Staples, Subway, Target, Trader Joe’s, Walgreens, Walmart, Visa

The consumer and small business data in this report was primarily collected from the following:

• A random-sample survey of 3,200 respondents conducted online in October 2015. The overall margin of error +1.74 at the 95% confidence level. The margin of error is larger for subsets.
• A random-sample survey of 3,182 respondents conducted online from July to August 2016. The overall margin of error +1.74 at the 95% confidence level. The margin of error is larger for subsets.
• A random-sample survey of 1,000 small and micro businesses conducted online in February 2016. Javelin defines micro businesses as those with annual revenue between $100,000 and $1 million and small businesses as those with revenue between $1 million and $10 million. The primary segment used for small business analysis in this report — “retailers” — is made up of small businesses that indicated being in the retail and hospitality industries.

Industry card data and EMV adoption were derived from industry interviews, with supplementary data from secondary sources such as The Nilson Report and data made public by the card networks.