Apple Announces Contactless Tap To Pay Feature For iPhones

(Fwrd Axis) — Apple announced on Tuesday they plan to introduce a new Tap to Pay feature for iPhone in the coming months that will turn your phone into a contactless payment portal, allowing users to accept Apple Pay and other contactless payments, including Google Pay, by using an iPhone.

“The new capability will empower millions of merchants across the US, from small businesses to large retailers, to use their iPhone to seamlessly and securely accept Apple Pay, contactless credit and debit cards, and other digital wallets through a simple tap to their iPhone — no additional hardware or payment terminal needed,” Apple said in a press release.

The new feature will be available in an upcoming version of iOS for iPhone XS and later models. Stripe will be the first payment platform to offer Tap to Pay on iPhone to customers through a new Shopify app and more payment platforms and apps will follow through later this year.

The service is using the iPhone’s NFC chip and will also accept Apple Pay, Visa, American Express, Mastercard, and Discover. Tap to Pay is the company’s latest financial services tool, which currently uses Apple Pay, a contactless payment service, Apple Pay Cash, for peer-to-peer payments, and Apple Card, an iPhone app-oriented credit card.

The company added the new feature would be accessed through third-party apps, which will be available later on in the year. Payment companies and app developers will be able to develop apps to access the company’s new Tap To Pay feature in other versions of iOS.

The news comes as tech company reported $68.43 billion in services revenue for the year ended in September and became the world’s first $3 trillion company back in January of this year. The company is expected to hold a Spring event next month announcing new MacBooks and iMacs along with some other surprises.