A Goldman Sachs rival pulled out of the Apple Card deal on fears it will be a money loser — CNBC — “‘Dude, if that portfolio ever makes money, I’m buying you a beer,’ an employee at the card department of a big bank texted a Goldman staffer… Citigroup was in advanced negotiations with Apple for the card but pulled out amid doubts that it could earn an acceptable profit on the partnership, according to people with knowledge of the talks… Goldman is ‘thrilled’ to be partnering with Apple, according to Andrew Williams, a spokesman for the New York-based bank.”
Apple
Analyst: Rise of OEM Pay smartphone wallets to cost banks US$15bn — in Australia alone
$22b of bank revenue at risk from smartphone wallets: Morgan Stanley — The Australian Financial Review — “Smartphone digital wallets offered by Google, Apple and other technology giants will put A$22bn of revenue across the major Australian banks at risk, according to Morgan Stanley… Its analysts came to that figure after looking into how a banks’ payments capability influences decisions relating to other products. This includes transaction accounts that give major banks an opportunity to cross-sell customers more profitable products such as mortgages.”
Mastercard to make Apple Card technology available to other issuers
Inside the Apple Card: Mastercard’s ‘digital first, physical optional’ platform — PaymentsSource — “Following about 18 months of secretive development with Apple and Goldman Sachs, Mastercard is ready to bring the same offering to other issuers. Its platform carries over many of the features that Apple Card users will get, according to Chris Reid, Mastercard’s executive vice president of cyber intelligence and data services for North America.”
TriMet rolls out NFC ticketing for iPhone users
Portland-Vancouver’s Hop Fastpass becomes first transit fare card in North America on iPhone — TriMet — “Starting today, riders in the Portland-Vancouver region can add a Hop Fastpass card to Apple Wallet and use their iPhone and Apple Watch to ride TriMet, C-Tran and Portland Streetcar.”
Apple Pay goes live in Luxembourg and Hungary
Apple Pay launches in Hungary and Luxembourg — MacRumors — “In Luxembourg, BGL BNP Paribas is currently the sole bank supporting Apple’s digital wallet, while OTP Bank is supporting Apple Pay in Hungary… The expansion within Europe follows the launch of Apple Pay in Iceland earlier this month. Elsewhere, regional banks in The Netherlands and Portugal have teased that Apple’s contactless payment system is ‘coming soon’.”
Privatbank to use customised ‘card avatars’ to drive mobile payments adoption
Ukraine’s PrivatBank has become the first in the world to provide customers with a way to customise the design of the cards they add to Google Pay or Apple Pay — beginning with a set of X-Men: Dark Phoenix original designs made available via a licensing deal with movie studio 20th Century Fox... More
Ticketmaster to roll out NFC ticketing for iPhones and Apple Watches ‘later this year’
Ticketmaster customers will be able to add contactless tickets to Apple Wallet later this year, enabling their tickets to be automatically selected via NFC when they hold their iPhone or Apple Watch near a ticket reader... More
Apple to include an NFC tag in Apple Card packaging
Apple Card’s colorful packaging revealed ahead of launch — Cult of Mac — “The photos of Apple Card were published by leaker Benjamin Geskin, who claims that Apple employees are now getting their hands on testing units… To activate the Card, customers simply unlock their iPhone and then hold it against an NFC tag that’s hidden inside the packaging. This adds the Card to the Wallet app and lets you use it right away.”
Apple Pay to go live in Hungary and Luxembourg?
Apple Pay nearing launch in Hungary and Luxembourg — MacRumors — “MacRumors has spotted the usual server-side changes that Apple makes shortly before expanding Apple Pay to new regions — in this case, Hungary and Luxembourg. The service could launch in both countries within days.”
Octopus equips Hong Kong taxi drivers with NFC payments
Transit card issuer Octopus Cards Limited (OCL) has partnered with Hong Kong Taxi Council (HKTC) to provide local taxi drivers with the ability to use their NFC phone to accept payments for cab rides from Octopus card users... More
Apple Pay goes live in Iceland
Apple Pay launches in Iceland with support from Arion Banki and Landsbankinn — AppleInsider — “The two banks announced support for Apple Pay on Wednesday via their official websites and Twitter. Available straight away, the added support now means customers that have accounts with either of the banks are able to add their card to the Wallet app, and use it to make contactless payments using Apple Pay for the iPhone and the Apple Watch.”
Zola hails success of NFC tags in NYC pop-up store
US wedding planning and list specialist Zola says using NFC in its bricks and mortar pop-up store in New York City has helped to bring the showroom to life and been well received by its customers who use it to build their wedding gift lists... More
Apple Pay boss reveals US merchants’ plans to use NFC tags for payments and loyalty sign-up
Dairy Queen, Bonobos, Panera Bread, Yogurtland, Jimmy John’s Gourmet Sandwiches, Dave & Buster’s, Caribou Coffee plus Bird and PayByPhone are all working on projects that use Apple’s Core NFC tag reading capabilities to make it easier for consumers to sign up for their services, Apple Pay boss Jennifer Bailey has revealed... More
Apple to expand Express Transit payments to open loop cards?
iOS 12.3 to bring EMV Express Transit support to Apple Pay — Tap Down Under — “New strings discovered within the pass.json files of Apple Pay card files make mention of new ‘Transit Network Identifiers’ options, as well as new passUpgrades/open loop options.”
Apple Pay to launch in the Netherlands ‘soon’
ING brings Apple Pay to the Netherlands — ING (translation) — “ING will soon be bringing Apple Pay to the Netherlands… More information about the introduction of Apple Pay in the Netherlands will be announced by ING shortly.”
Standard Chartered adds instant credit card and loan issuance to its Singapore banking app
Standard Chartered has become the first bank in Singapore to offer customers the ability to use its mobile banking app to apply for loans and credit cards — and, if approved, have a digital version of their new credit card instantly provisioned to their Apple Pay, Google Pay or Samsung Pay digital wallet so they can make payments... More
Marshall University lets students add campus cards to iPhone and Apple Watch
Marshall ID cards now available on iPhone and Apple Watch — Marshall University — “By simply placing their iPhone or Apple Watch near a reader where physical student IDs are accepted, users can enter residence halls and libraries, access dining plans, purchase food, buy items in the university bookstore or in vending machines, print documents and more.”
Apple Pay goes live in Austria
Apple Pay officially launches in Austria — MacRumors — “Apple’s mobile payment system is now supported by the country’s largest bank Erste Bank und Sparkasse, as well as German-based mobile bank N26… Apple says additional Apple Pay partners ‘coming soon’ to Austria will include Bank Austria, Boon, Edenred, Revolut and VimPay.”
Apple to open up the iPhone’s NFC chip at WWDC?
Apple may expand the iPhone’s NFC tech to third-party developers during WWDC — TechSpot — “NFC is getting major improvements, including the ability for third-party developers to read any ISO 7816, FeliCa or MiFare tags. Currently, only tags formatted as NDEF can be read by third-party apps… Keep in mind, the news is from anonymous sources and is far from official.”
Decathlon opens RFID-enabled store in the US
Sports retailer Decathlon has incorporated RFID tags into products at its first physical store in the US... More