Dive Brief:

• MCX, the retailer-backed coalition developing Apple Pay competitor CurrentC, has been hacked within the past 36 hours, according to notifications from the company. 
• The company, which includes retailers like Wal-Mart and Best Buy in its ranks, says that hackers obtained email addresses of participants in its CurrentC pilot program. The mobile payment solution, said to be a direct threat to Apple Pay, is currently being tested in select Minneapolis-area retailers. 
• The news comes just days after retailers began disabling their Near Field Communications systems to thwart the use of Apple Pay in their stores. 

Dive Insight:

Well, this is awkward. The timing couldn't be any worse for MCX, which looks to slow Apple Pay's roll by introducing a competitor with backing from major U.S. retailers. And while the breach seems minor -- garnering only email addresses, some of which were dummy accounts used for testing purposes -- the word "hack" appearing anywhere near a new payment system could be unsettling to potential users.