Singapore Becomes the Sixth Country to get Apple Pay

[Maura]

Following on from a limited trial start last month where only Amex was supported, Singapore has today become the sixth country worldwide to have Apple Pay, with the US, UK, Canada, Australia, and China being the other five countries.

The service is initially supported by Visa, MasterCard, and five major banks.

“Now, almost everyone can leave their wallets at home,” said Apple Pay vice-president Jennifer Bailey in The Straits Times. “Apple Pay will be a natural extension of what users have been doing at payment counters.”

9to5 Mac notes that contactless payment is already well established in Singapore, making it a natural choice for Apple Pay.

The five banks that are supporting Apple Pay in Singapore from day 1 are POSB, DBS Bank, OCBC Bank, United Overseas Bank, and Standard Chartered Bank. Together they account for 80% of card transactions in Singapore. There is an SG$100 ($72) cap for Apple Pay transactions in Singapore, but United Overseas Bank has lifted the cap for retailers that use its payment-processing service.

It’s expected that Spain and Hong Kong will also be getting Apple Pay sometime this year.

Source: Apple Pay launches fully in Singapore, five major banks live today

 

[skimonkey]

Last November, I purchased my 6s Plus. Going from a 5 to the big screen took some getting used to, but I quickly began to love it. I have been using Apple Pay at my local Walgreen's and simply love the convenience factor of not having to whip out my walgreen's bonus card and then my credit card. The first time I used my phone to pay, I remember feeling a little nervous about it going up to the counter, lol. Thankfully, the cashier new all about this and walked me through it even after I prepped myself by watching a youtube video on it beforehand.

There are other stores that I have paid by phone through their store app, such as Star Bucks and Kohl's. Once again, a little awkward at first...but now it's easy! I really love it.