The money-savvy tech from Heritage Bank you need to get your hands on today

It’s 7:56pm. You’ve raced down to the corner store to grab some milk before it closes, but a sudden shiver runs down your spine as you grope at your empty pockets for the keys and wallet you know you left back home on the kitchen bench. Uh oh.

While your chances of getting back inside may be slim, the recent emergence of wearable payment devices available to Aussie banking customers means that at least you won’t be left without milk anytime soon.

A number of wearables, such as Heritage Bank’s HOVA wristband that works just like a debit card on your wrist and Westpac’s similar PayWear offering, have emerged on the market in recent months to give Australian’s another payment choice to add to their existing arsenal of card, phone and even good old cash.

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Unlike some of the existing wearable financial devices, both HOVA and PayWear are linked to customers’ bank accounts, which means users can tap using their own spending money (up to $100 without having to enter a pin), not just the funds they’ve pre-loaded onto the device.

“What’s different about HOVA is that it links directly to your Visa debit account, unlike other wearables that require users to load money onto a prepaid card,” said Heritage Bank CEO Peter Lock.

“The beauty of HOVA is that it works just like a Visa Debit card, but it’s conveniently strapped to your wrist like a watch. Because it contains a Visa payWave chip, it’s a great option for people who don't have the right kind of watch or who don't want to carry their phone with them.”

A May report from the Australian Payments Network indicated that wearable technology was fast becoming a popular form of payment option, especially given the decline of physical payment methods such as cash and cheque.

The report noted that nearly 15% of Australians now own a smart wearable device, with that figure predicted more than double to 37% by 2020.    

Heritage Bank customers who want to snag a HOVA payment band of their own will need to be fast though, as the initial release is only available until the end of November.

In the meantime, head on over to the Mozo bank account hub to compare a range of convenient online banking options, or check out some of the great offers below: