Apple plans to extend Apple Pay past the US and into Canada sooner than expected. 9to5mac reports on Friday that Apple will kick-off the international launch of Apple Pay in Canada as early as March.
The publication says launch partners in Canada are in the process of planning advertising and promotional material for March, indicating the launch as early as that month. Of course, like all deals in the business space, things could change. Which banks and credit unions in the maple syrup country weren’t named.
It’s not clear when Apple plans to bring Apple Pay to the UK, other parts of Europe, and China. However, job postings last month indicate it could come as early as the first half of this year, and a launch in Canada makes it sound like Apple is moving fast to get Apple Pay rolling.
In the US, Apple Pay is still in its early days, however early data from November shows it’s making notable headway in the mobile payments space. Apple Pay now accounts for 1.7 percent of the mobile payments market after its launch on October 20, but still lagging behind Google Wallet’s 4 percent share of the market, according to ITG research.
Source: 9to5mac