Aussie banks battle Apple Pay

28 July 2016 by News Desk   |   SHARE  

Apple Pay could be forced to change its’ business model if the Aussie legal challenge succeeds.

Apple Pay was launched in Australia in April this year to the delight of iPhone owners, but to the chagrin of major Australian banks.

“Even before Apple launched its new payment service in Australia we reported that Aussie banks were likely to launch a legal challenge,” says Darrell Todd, founder of thinkingaustralia.

The legal challenge aims to overturn Apple’s policy of banning third-party digital payment solutions from running on its operating system.

Instead, the US company insists that other providers such as banks and payment providers integrate their offering with Apple Pay.

Only one major Aussie financial institution, Australia and New Zealand Bank, has so far signed up to operate via Apple Pay.

Soon after Apple Pay launched Down Under, rival offerings from Samsung Pay and Android Pay came onto the market.

Aussie banks battle Apple Pay

Now Australia’s biggest banks have joined together to take on Apple, the world’s biggest company.

The country’s top three lenders – National Australia Bank, Commonwealth Bank of Australia and Westpac – along with Bendigo and Adelaide Bank have filed an application with the Australian Competition & Consumer Commission seeking permission to collectively negotiate with Apple to enable their respective services without violating anti-competition laws.

The legal submission says:

‘The applicants seek authorisation on behalf of themselves and potentially other credit and debit card issuers to engage in limited collective negotiation with providers of third-party mobile wallet services on conditions relating to competition, best practice standards, and efficiency and transparency. The applicants also seek authorisation to enter into a limited form of collective boycott in relation to a third-party mobile wallet provider while collective negotiations with that provider are ongoing’.

Apple Pay is currently available in the US, UK, Canada, Australia, China, Singapore, Switzerland, France and Hong Kong.

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