Since the first day mobile phone invented, we have seen more and more functionalities a mobile phone has. First, it was for making calls, then text messaging, after that manufacturers added cameras, e-mail, music etc into the phone.

After introducing handsets last year that double as debit cards, now, Japanese carrier NTT DoCoMo Inc. wants to entrench the once-humble cell phone even deeper into consumer lifestyles by turning it into an electronic wallet - as a full-fledged credit cards.

Quoted:
To boost its effort to make mobiles the new way to pay, DoCoMo is taking a 34% stake in Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group Inc.’s credit-card business. In late April, DoCoMo said it would pay $935 million for the stake in Japan’s second-largest credit-card issuer. DoCoMo has also held talks with Japan’s No. 1 issuer, JCB International Co., about some sort of tie-up, though no details have been released.

Regarding security, DoCoMo says that won’t be a problem. Each time a customer makes a purchase using the phone, the company will automatically send an e-mail confirming the transaction - which should aid in detecting fraud sooner than with traditional credit cards.

Well, this is no doubt another big step in mobile phone evolution.