While Apple is reported to be in talks with banks in the U.K. about an early 2015 launch of its mobile payments solution, Apple Pay, one of Britain’s biggest banks is said to be leery of sharing personal and financial information about its customers due to a fear of an Apple “invasion of the banking industry.”
Apple hopes to launch Apple Pay in the first half of 2015, according to The Telegraph which cited unnamed sources familiar with the ongoing talks. Negotiations are said to be “tricky,” as at least one of Britain’s biggest banks is reportedly reluctant to share too much information with Apple to launch its tap-to-pay service.
The report claims the bank is reluctant to share information with Apple, saying, “Some executives fear Apple Pay and the data it delivers to Apple could serve as a beachhead for an invasion of the banking industry.”
Apple Pay hit the ground running in the U.S. back in October, as it quickly grabbed 1% of all digital payment dollars in the month of November.
While Apple Pay is currently only available in the U.S., Apple job listings indicate rollouts are imminent in both Europe and China.
Apple Pay relies on Near Field Communication technology, so it is already compatible with global systems that use the technology. However, internationally, it is only operational if a user’s device is set up to use American credit cards.
