Canadian Banks Come Around to Apple Pay

Apple Pay has finally made it in Canada.

The mPayment platform launched in the country last autumn, of course. But at that time, it was supported only by American Express; now, it’s actually getting support from major financial institutions.

Royal Bank of Canada (RBC) and CIBC have both enabled Visa and MasterCard support for Apple Pay starting today, and Bank of Montreal has announced that its own support is on the way. Meanwhile, Canada’s major debit network, Interac, has also announced its support, allowing RBC and CIBC cardholders to link Apple Pay directly to their bank accounts.

Apple Pay also launched in Australia last autumn, also with the exclusive support of American Express, which can issue its own cards independently of banks; and it’s worth noting that the Canadian banks’ support arrives just as Australia’s financial services industry appears to be warming up to the service, with ANZ having officially announced its support at the end of last month. The major banks are evidently coming to the conclusion that mPayment services like Apple Pay are a force that is going to have to be reckoned with, and that if they can’t beat them, they might as well join them.

Source: CBC News