CUPERTINO, Calif., Oct. 28 (UPI) — Apple announced Wednesday the expansion of its Apple Pay mobile payments service to American Express cardholders in Australia and Canada.
Apple Pay has been available in the United States since October 2014 and in the United Kingdom since July this year. In 2016, AMEX will expand the service to cardholders in Spain, Hong Kong and Singapore.
The service, available for iPhone 6 and later models, uses near-field communications technology together with the phone’s Touch ID system to provide contactless transactions in shops and quicker purchases through apps and websites.
Apple has not said whether it will support other banks or credit card companies in Australia and Canada despite supporting most major financial institutions in the United States and United Kingdom.
Apple has also kept usage reports of its service private, though it teased “double-digit growth” on a monthly basis.
The Verge says research firm Phoenix Marketing International found only 14 percent of U.S. households with credit cards use Apple Pay.
Additionally, The Telegraph says research firm eMarketer found 16.4 million contact-less smartphone payments were made in 2014.
Apple’s service has been more successful than competitors Android Pay and PayPal, with a 2015 survey showing Apple’s 68 percent dominance of all in-store mobile payments in the U.S.
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