“Startups in the U.K. are hoping to get a boost from Apple Pay’s launch there this week, the mobile-payment service’s European debut,” Ania Nussbaum reports for The Wall Street Journal. “More than 250,000 U.K. locations, including the London Underground, now accept payment with a wave of an iPhone, iPad or Apple Watch through a digital credit card that can also purchase items through vendors’ apps.”
“It is a market primed for Apple Pay, with many places already using contactless payments,” Nussbaum reports. “Some taxi drivers still insist on cash, but it is increasingly easy to get around London without any notes or coins. Last year, the balance officially shifted: According to the U.K. Payments Council, a body funded by the payment industry, just 48% of transactions were made with cash in the U.K., down from 53% in 2013.”
Nussbaum reports, “The trend has many of the small businesses and startups that have signed up to accept Apple payments hoping to get a boost in sales.”
Read more in the full article here.
MacDailyNews Take: We’re still flummoxing/shocking people here in the U.S. when Apple Paying via Apple Watch. Can we please get up to speed? A simple ad campaign for Apple Pay that shows Apple Watch clearly paying for goods would go a long way to educating and promoting both Apple Pay and Apple Watch!
SEE ALSO:
Apple Pay launches in Britain as former holdout Barclays signs up – July 15, 2015
Brits are going wild for ‘quite impressive’ Apple Pay – July 14, 2015
Apple Pay launches in the UK – July 14, 2015
The only time I ever use cash is when I park at the station, and that’s only because of the two stations near me, the cash one is £1 on weekends, and the one that takes cards is £2, not huge amounts but it’s still double. I’d rathe throw a quid in the bin than give it to NCP.
Still waiting for Lloyds. I was gonna move to a bank that does Apple Pay but it’s too much hassle.
I am still baffled by the high percentage of cash transactions in America, especially in certain parts of the country. I shouldn’t be surprised, though. Compared to the levels of privacy in Europe, it is no wonder why so many Americans try to avoid electronic trail of their spending, when banks, retailers and everyone else wantonly share such data with anyone wiling to pay.