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Apple Pay arrives in South Africa

Although not all SA banks have secured Apple Pay, those who have access are elated it is here.

Apple Pay is now in South Africa but only a few banks have made it accessible

Apple Pay is now in South Africa but only a few banks have secured it but others will eventually introduce it to Apple users

The best tech news is that Apple Pay is finally available in South Africa – for Apple users that is.

With Apple at the helm of innovation, people are wondering what took it so long especially since its competitor introduced Samsung Pay two years ago.

Unfortunately not all banks have the digital wallet yet. At the moment only Nedbank andAbsa of the big five banks support Apple Pay plus the new kid on the block, Discovery Bank.

People are wondering why the normally digitally savvy FNB has been left behind. But the bank assured customers Apple Pay is well on its way as it is working with Apple to refine the details.

ALSO READ: Is your bank making the transition to digital payments easier for you?

In an interview with BusinessTech, FNB Card CEO Chris Labuschagne said the bank was working with Apple and looked forward to bringing Apple Pay to its customers.

“Once available, it will be accessible at scale to the nearly 1 million iPhone users of our 6 million digitally active customers,” Labuschagne said. Standard Bank is also yet to join the Apple Pay party.

As a digital wallet, Apple Pay allows users to load a supported bank card and use their Apple device – iPhone or Watch – to make contactless payments at supported shopping NFC terminals.

Through Apple Pay you can also send and receive money from friends and family in Messages. “Apple Pay is a safer way to pay and even simpler than using your physical card,” that’s according to Goodthingsguy.com.