As first reported exclusively by finews.ch, Apple is introducing its payment app, Apple Pay, in Switzerland. The IT giant from California is well-placed to dominate the market as other payment services struggle to compete.
The worst nightmare of Swiss banks has become a reality: starting Thursday, a heavyweight outsider begins offering a payment service in their home market. Apple has brought its payment app, Apple Pay, to Switzerland.
In June, finews.ch reported the imminent launch of Apple Pay in Switzerland. The introduction of the service is now being announced by Apple Pay’s partners in Switzerland, for example the kiosk operator Valora. Also on board from the financial world are the Ticino Corner Bank with the Cornercard, as well as the credit card operators Visa, Mastercard and Swiss Bankers.
NFC chip as a lever
Apple Pay’s main local competitor, the payment app Twint, which is backed by banks like UBS, Credit Suisse, Zuercher Kantonalbank, Postfinance and Raiffeisen, as well as the retail giants Coop and Migros, will only be available in its new form in the autumn.
Twint faces another significant disadvantage against Apple Pay: Apple blocks NFC (Near Field Communication) technology in its smartphones for other payment operators. With a 50 per cent share of the smartphone market, that is a serious obstacle. It was already enough to cause the Swisscom payment app Tapit to fail.
In the meantime, Apple Pay can connect with the payment terminals of most Swiss retailers. The Bluetooth technology, which Twint relies on, is not yet widely used in stores.
Consumer protection concerns
The first resistance to Apple’s power play has emerged. The «Neue Zuercher Zeitung» newspaper has reported that the Consumer Protection Association (SKS) has made a complaint against Apple with the Swiss Competition Authority (Weko) on the grounds that the American company is denying other firms access to NFC terminals.
It will be interesting to watch the next move in the battle of the Swiss payment apps.
