Apple Pay’s China launch could be imminent

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In December 2015, Apple officially confirmed plans to roll out its mobile payment service in China in co-operation with UnionPay, as soon as early-2016. Well, here we are in 2016 and a pair of videos discovered by MacRumors gives us a good indication that Apple Pay might be on the verge of launching in the 1.33 billion people market.

The videos show a customer choosing a UnionPay card in Apple Pay and completing a purchase at McDonald’s by holding their iPhone near a QuickPass-enabled Verifone payment terminal.

Here’s that video.

The second clip, which can be seen further below, shows another customer making an In-App Purchase with Apple Pay within Chinese travel app Ctrip.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GnwrusknYPc

The partnership with UnionPay, a state-run interbank network, will permit UnionPay cardholders to take advantage of Apple Pay on their iPhone, Apple Watch and within apps on iPads.

Using Apple Pay in Chinese stores will be as simple as holding your iPhone near a UnionPay QuickPass-enabled POS terminal with your finger on Touch ID. And with Apple Watch, you’ll be able to double click the side button and hold the watch face up to the contactless reader.

“We’re very excited to offer Apple Pay among a diverse set of innovative payment options that work with China UnionPay QuickPass,” Chai Hongfeng, executive vice president of China UnionPay, was quoted as saying in Apple’s press release.

“China is an extremely important market for Apple and with China UnionPay and support from 15 of China’s leading banks, users will soon have a convenient, private and secure payment experience,” said Eddy Cue, Apple’s senior vice president of Internet Software and Services.

Apple Pay is currently available in the United States, United Kingdom, Canada and Australia and expected to launch in Hong Kong, Singapore and Spain later this year.

Source: MacRumors