Apple is planning on rolling out its Apple Pay mobile payment system in China within the next few months, it’s being reported.
Apple Pay launched a little over a year ago in its home US market, before making its way over to the UK in July. Now it could be China’s turn to receive the iPhone and Apple Watch-powered payment system.
The Wall Street Journal claims to have learned from its sources that Apple Pay will hit China by early February. Apparently, Apple has struck deals with the country’s four state-run banks, opening the way for an Apple Pay rollout.
It might not all be plain sailing, however. Apple could still face regulatory problems, as banking and e-commerce are overseen by a whole bunch of government agencies in China.
What’s also unclear is how much Apple would make on each Chinese Apple Pay transaction. This has been a sticking point in negotiations so far, it seems.
Related: Android Pay vs Apple Pay: How do they compare?
A wider potential issue is the fact that mobile payments are already well established in the country, with an estimated $540 billion (£357 billion) spent in this way during the second quarter of 2015. This means that Apple will be launching into a highly competitive market.
Apple apparently hopes to launch Apple Pay in China before the country’s Spring Festival holiday, which takes place on February 8.
Next, see how we got on with Apple Pay when it launched in the UK:
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Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
