Smartphone customers of Deutsche Telekom, provided they have a compatible device, can make mobile payments by downloading the newly-launched MyWallet app and using MyWallet Card, the digital wallet’s first service.

“In the future, our customers will not only use their digital wallets to make easy, secure payments, but also store concert tickets, membership cards or bonus points,” said Michael Hagspihl, director of marketing at the German incumbent.

He added that customers signing up for mobile payments with the MyWallet Card will get an introductory bonus of up to €40.

In addition to the app and a MyWallet-capable Android smartphone, customers need an NFC-enabled SIM card to use the digital wallet. The SIM card, says the German incumbent, serves as a secure data safe for the payment data. NFC-enabled SIM cards will be shipped with every new MyWallet-capable smartphone from now on, says the operator.

MyWallet can be downloaded as a free app from the Google Play Store and is compatible with some 18 smartphone models from Samsung and Sony.

“As a result, more than two million Deutsche Telekom customers in Germany already have the technology for mobile payment,” said Thomas Kiessling, chief product & innovation at Deutsche Telekom. “And also on an international level we will launch mobile payment products this year. In Slovakia we will introduce our payment solution mid-May. In Hungary – after a test phase with services like payment and ticketing – a commercial launch is also planned for this year.”

The MyWallet card is a prepaid MasterCard and users can pay at more than 35,000 PayPass merchants throughout Germany and more than 1.6 million merchants worldwide.

Participating chains in Germany include Starbucks, Aral, Douglas, Kaufhof, Thalia, Vapiano and the Telekom Shops. The issuer of the MyWallet Card is ClickandBuy, a Deutsche Telekom subsidiary.

The launch of additional offerings for MyWallet is planned for this summer, including cooperation with Tank und Rast, which will enable MyWallet payments and other contactless payment systems at 400 highway rest stops throughout Germany.

Starting in June, it will also be possible to store digital coupons from supermarket chains Hit and Edeka using MyWallet.

Deutsche Telekom says it has chosen Bonn as a “flagship city” for supplying terminals for mobile payments. Bonn already has nearly 1,000 acceptance points in restaurants, shops and filling stations. In addition, says the German incumbent, special promotions and deals will become available in Bonn’s restaurants and businesses in the coming months.