ST’ STPay-Topaz-2 contactless-payment solution boosts flexibility and security
ST has unveiled STPay-Topaz-2, its next-generation contactless payment card system-on-chip (SoC), offering more flexibility to support a wider variety of payment brands and ease stock management for customers. The new auto-tuning feature ensures reader-independent connection quality for an enhanced user experience, while advanced cryptography strengthens security and prepares the platform for upcoming, stronger industry standards.
STPay-Topaz-2 now introduces a specific feature which allows preloading the greatest quantity of payment applets per orderable part number in the market, which simplifies inventory management for card manufacturers. This innovation includes a unique product versioning which embeds the latest and most popular payment applets worldwide, including both VSDC2.8.1g1 and 2.9.2 Visa applets.
“Contactless payment has been a huge hit with consumers and the technology must now move forward as card suppliers strive to meet growing customer demand and more diverse market requirements,” said Bruno Batut, Banking & ID Business Unit Marketing Director, Connected Security Division, STMicroelectronics. “STPay-Topaz-2 can consolidate the largest set of payment apps on one orderable part number to simplify inventory management for card manufacturers, paving the way for further expansion in contactless payment popularity. We’ve also added auto-tuning to ensure the best tap-anywhere user experience and upgraded security ready for future standards including the forthcoming EMVCo C-8 kernel.”
The STPay-Topaz-2 is based on the ST31R480 secure microcontroller (MCU), manufactured in ST’s secure and certified facilities in France. The secure MCU achieved EMVCo certification in November 2024 and recently completed Common Criteria EAL6+ certification.
This STPay solution is ready for the payment industry’s adoption of stronger digital security, ranging from RSA/3DES encryption to advanced encryption standard (AES) and elliptic curve cryptography (ECC): it is designed to comply with the forthcoming EMVCo C 8 kernel. The platform also meets GlobalPlatform and Java Card standards, making it suitable for payments, loyalty programs, and custom applications.
With enhanced wireless performance, STPay-Topaz-2 also simplifies antenna integration for card manufacturers and enables efficient connectivity even with smaller antennas, providing greater design flexibility.
