Apple makes it easy for consumers to pay with Tap to Cash

Apple is unveiling a new feature in its next update. Entitled Tap to Cash, this feature aims to develop the use of "Tap" between individuals, i.e. the use of the NFC chip to make a payment. Simpler and more secure, the Tap to Cash solution will enable Apple to expand further into the payments ecosystem, a field in which the company faces strong competition, particularly in Europe.

FACTS

• Apple has unveiled the new features that will arrive with iOS18.
• The American firm has innovated on the payment side, introducing Tap to Cash, a solution for exchanging money more easily between two iPhones.
• In concrete terms, two owners of iPhones equipped with the iOS18 update will be able to exchange money by taping their smartphones together. The payer sends his or her money, and the receiver accepts or rejects the amount.
• Apple says users will also be able to exchange rewards, or make payments with their credit or debit cards.
• However, this feature would work in conjunction with Apple Cash, and would therefore only be available in the United States. Apple has yet to specify exactly how Tap to Cash will work.

CHALLENGES

• A secure solution: Tap to Cash should work without information sharing. It would therefore also be a more secure way of making payments between individuals.
• A further step towards frictionlessness: Tap to Cash is a derivative of Tap to Pay, a feature introduced in France a few months ago, which uses NFC technology to turn iPhones into payment terminals. Once again, Apple is focusing on simplifying the user experience, including in the P2P payment market. NFC technology can be used in a wide variety of ways, enabling refunds to be made even when offline.

MARKET PERSPECTIVE

• The Cupertino-based company continues to expand in the financial services sector, and just a few months ago improved its Apple Cash solution. It has added virtual card numbers in order to extend its solution even to merchants who do not accept Apple Cash.
• With this latest addition to Tap to Cash, Apple is once again demonstrating its ambition to develop payment services within its ecosystem, exploiting NFC technology in particular.
• This strategic decision represents an even greater competitive challenge for Apple, as Europe has just forced it to open up its NFC chips to the competition, enabling other solutions to offer alternatives that can be used directly on the iPhone. This is the case of Curve, for example, which is aiming to make Curve Pay the first competitor to Apple Pay on iPhones.