It's simple, and it's a secure way for customers to use their smartphone.' 'We are creating a seamless shopping experience that includes payment,' Neil Ashe, president and CEO of Wal-Mart's global eCommerce, told reporters on a conference call. The move signals that Wal-Mart believes it's best to build its own system to better serve its customers, even as it backs an industry-wide mobile payment program that it's testing with 10 other major retailers. In Canada, Apple Pay is available only for Amex cardholders and Samsung Pay has yet to arrive. Wal-Mart has moved into this field as Apple's one-year-old tap-and-pay system is being expanded to other merchants like Best Buy and KFC in the U.S. and comes several months after Google launched the Android Pay mobile wallet app and Samsung came out with Samsung Pay. Retailers, financial institutions and hardware makers are all trying to get a piece of what could be a very lucrative business.

But the move is the latest salvo in the battle for mobile payments that's in the early stages. It's part of an overall mobile strategy to making shopping easier and faster, and it's the latest feature to be added to its mobile app. While some stores like Starbucks or Dunkin' Donuts allow customers to pay with gift cards, Wal-Mart says it will become the first retailer to launch its own mobile payment system that works with an iPhone or Android device - and with a major credit or debit card. It could be a lot longer before Canadians can enjoy the same convenience. A Wal-Mart spokeswoman said there are no plans to roll out the system outside the U.S. It plans to launch the payment feature in all 4,500-plus U.S. It will start testing the new payment system Thursday at its stores in the Bentonville, Arkansas area, where the retailer is based. Wal-Mart Stores Inc., the world's largest retailer, said it's testing its own mobile payment system that will allow shoppers to pay with any major credit or debit card or its own store gift card through its app at the cash register.

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