Apple Pay is getting a big boost in Canada by adding support for three major banks. Customers of Bank of Nova Scotia, Bank of Montreal and Toronto-Dominion Bank can now add the bank’s credit cards and debit to their Apple Pay digital wallet, according to a report from the Financial Post, This adds to the Royal Bank of Canada and Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce, which launched support for Apple Pay earlier this year. Introduced in 2014, Apple Pay lets users upload credit and debit card information to a “mobile wallet.” Customers can then use their iPhone or Apple Watch to pay at retail stores that have point-of-sale registers equipped with near field communication technology, known as NFC.
People can also use their Apple Pay accounts to pay for items within apps if the app developer has integrated the service. The service is currently available in the U.S., U.K., Canada, and Australia, and China. Google and Samsung also offer rival services, which is why the race to get more banks (and users) on board is important to gain a bigger foothold in the emerging market. Apple Pay originally launched in Canada in November 2015, but only worked with American Express cards. With Wednesday’s announcement, Apple Pay now has most of Canada’s largest banks. Apple hasn’t released many numbers showing adoption of its mobile payments service. The company recently said that its service is accepted at millions of stores. According to a report from Crone Consulting Apple Pay has 12 million people users, with Google’s Android Pay and Samsung Pay tying for second place with 5 million users.
Writer - Liam McClelland | @Liamicy