THE AUSTRALIAN. Michael Bennet
AUSTRALIA’S major banks have signalled they will work with Apple to ensure customers can pay for products with their iPhones, after the technology giant unveiled new “tap and go” payment functionality.
After previously shunning so-called “near field communication” in iPhones, Apple today unveiled “Apple Pay” for its new suite of products so people can make contactless payments using their phones, rather than their credit cards.
Samsung’s Android smartphone already has the functionality, supported by multiple local banks. Apple’s move is the latest from a wave of new “disrupters”, including Google, PayPal and Facebook, targeting parts of the lucrative financial services sector dominated by the big banks.
The rapid pace of innovation and rising threat has caught the banks’ attention, with Commonwealth Bank chief Ian Narev previously labelling new players as big of a concern as his banking rivals.
While Apple Pay will first be rolled out in the US, Westpac’s chief product officer David Lindberg said it would work with Apple to synch the technology with its mobile banking app.
“At this stage, the Apple solution is US-only and we look forward to working with Apple to open up the solution to our mobile banking application in the same way they have opened up the touch ID fingerprint security in IOS 8,” he said.
“The fingerprint login is soon to be launched through our mobile banking applications.”
Apple Pay supports credit and debit cards from American Express, MasterCard and Visa, issued by major US banks Bank of America, Capital One Bank, Chase, Citi and Wells Fargo.
Apple vowed “security and privacy” was at the core of its new offering, including not collecting purchase history.
It added credit card numbers were not stored on the device or Apple servers, with users assigned a unique account number stored in the “secure element” of the iPhone or Apple Watch.
A spokesman for Commonwealth Bank, the nation’s largest lender, said the bank was “examining the details” of Apple’s newly unveiled iPhone 6, including the new payment features.
“Commonwealth Bank has updated the CommBank app for IOS 8. We will examine the details of the announcement for any changes and how this will affect any of our suite of IOS applications designed for the iPhone,” he said.
“We will announce any future enhancements to our applications when they are ready for customers.”
CBA offers NFC functionality through a “PayTag” for iPhone and Android phones, a sticker customers attach to their smartphone to make payments.
