File this one under “Not Shocked”. Google Wallet sent out an email to users today letting them know that as of June 30th of this year, the physical card associated with the service will no longer be supported.
After careful consideration, we’ve decided that we’ll no longer support the Wallet Card as of June 30. Moving forward, we want to focus on making it easier than ever to send and receive money with the Google Wallet app.
Given all of the changes that have been made by Google on payments and money transfers with Wallet and with Android Pay, the news was somewhat expected and had been rumored over the course of the past week.
In the email, Google outlines how this will impact users and states that both American Express and Simple offer similar styled accounts to Wallet for users should they want to go that route. You
Google Wallet SMS Money Sending
can only use the Wallet Card until June 30th. Probably more importantly, you will not be able to add money to your Wallet Balance from a debit card or bank account after May 1st but money you receive from others will still be added to your balance. Finally, if you have a wallet balance after May 1st, you can keep it there, send it to others or cash out for free.
To conclude the mail, the Google Wallet team teased at some upcoming changes to the app.
As we wind down support for the Wallet Card, we’re excited to continue enhancing Google Wallet to give you the best possible experience when paying friends and family. We’re hard at work on new features, so keep an eye out for those in the coming months.
My question for you readers is if this is a big deal or not? I suspect most you have another way to solve this problem and with Android Pay now well established as the terminal pay system, a physical Wallet card doesn’t seem like a big loss. Or is it? Let me know what you think.
