Research In Motion (RIM) today announced the BlackBerry Bold 9900 and BlackBerry Curve 9360 smartphones are the first SIM-based NFC smartphones to be certified by MasterCard Worldwide as PayPass-approved devices.

"NFC technology is making smartphones even smarter and the MasterCard certification is a significant step forward in helping transform the way we use mobile devices for payments,” said Andrew Bocking, vice president of handheld software product management at RIM, in a statement.

We are working proactively with our carrier partners, banks, retailers and other industry players and we are excited to push the boundaries of how NFC can enable new mobile experiences for BlackBerry smartphone users around the world.,"Bocking said.

The certification was granted on the basis of the BlackBerry smartphones meeting the functionality, interoperability and security requirements of MasterCard. With this certification, any MasterCard PayPass-issuing bank globally will be able to deploy MasterCard PayPass-enabled accounts to the SIM card of these smartphones.