China has officially become the fifth location for the rollout out of Apple Pay mobile payment solution. The Cupertino-based company’s partnership with UnionPay was widely reported a number of months ago, where it was also noted that the collaboration would see Apple able to penetrate the Chinese market with Apple Pay. That partnership has now come to fruition with the payment platform launching in the market thanks to UnionPay’s wide-ranging infrastructure that’s supported by multiple banks in the country.
As you would expect, the support for Apple Pay extends to those with a compatible iPhone or iPad, as well as those with an Apple Watch. The individual must be in ownership of an eligible China UnionPay debit or credit card to be able to set the process up through Apple’s stock Wallet app.
Apple may be aggressively attempting to expand the reach of Apple Pay across the world, but China, like most other countries that have already adopted the solution, won’t exactly be an easy nut to crack.
That problem is extremely likely to have already been taken into account by Apple and any partners that it chooses to operate alongside in the country. After initially announcing the imminent expansion into the Chinese market in December 2015, it has literally only taken two months for the platform to launch with support for approximately 80-percent of credit and debit cards in operation across the economy.
The immediate availably of Apple Pay in China means that Apple’s contactless payment service is now available in the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, and Australia for those with a compatible device. France is said to be next country in line to get Apple Pay support, sometime this year.
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