According to a report by the Wall Street Journal, Apple is looking to launch Apple Pay, its mobile NFC payment system, in China by February 2016. This is apparently made possible by recent deals the company has made with China's state-run banks so that Chinese folks could attach their local accounts to it.
Apple Pay has been ramping up since launching in the United States in October 2014. It has since launched in the United Kingdom, Canada and Australia. A move to China would make sense given the possible market — smartphones are a big deal in the Asian country — though the government could still cause problems for the would-be payment system.
One particular sticking point? How much of a cut Apple gets out of the whole thing, according to the Wall Street Journal. The company reportedly makes 0.15 percent on credit card transactions and 0.5 cents on debit card purchases. That may not seem like much, but across possibly millions of transactions, it adds up. Whether Apple's looking to make the same amount in China for each type of transaction isn't clear.
When reached by Reuters to comment on the speculation, an Apple spokeswoman said that they "have nothing to announce at this time," which is essentially a different version of "no comment."
Even if the February 2016 date doesn't actually pan out, it's likely only a matter of time before Apple Pay comes to China, given the continued prevalence of smartphones.
Source: Wall Street Journal via Reuters
