Samsung Pay to Launch in Singapore This Quarter

Samsung has announced that its mPayment platform, Samsung Pay, will launch in Singapore this quarter. The announcement came only one day after Apple Pay launched in the country, with Samsung declining to offer a specific launch date.

To a considerable extent, the announcement marks yet another instance of Samsung playing catch-up with its rival Apple. While the two companies’ mPayment platforms are not in direct competition—they’re each restricted to the companies’ discrete device ecosystems—there is considerable overlap in the markets they serve, and Samsung Pay often launches after Apple Pay in a given region. In the US, Apple Pay had a head start of about a year; while in China, Samsung Pay recently launched relatively soon after Apple Pay made its debut.

It’s worth noting, however, that Samsung Pay is already available in Singapore as a payment option on trains and buses, and meanwhile Apple Pay is available only for American Express cardholders. But Apple says that it is working with the country’s card issuers to bring further support soon, and Samsung says it has already secured the partnership of Visa and MasterCard, with major bank support to follow.

Sources: CNBC, Yahoo!