Apple is "working rapidly" to expand its mobile payments service, Apple Pay, into more countries in Asia and Europe, with the company looking to have it available in all the significant markets where it operates.
The statement was made by Jennifer Bailey, vice president for Apple Pay, in an interview with TechCrunch.
Singapore is the latest country to see an Apple Pay launch as the service was introduced to the country just last month. Singapore is the second country in Asia to gain access to Apple Pay, with China being the first one.
Apple Pay has since expanded even more in Singapore, and the service now supports five major banks in the country covering 80 percent of cards.
The other countries where Apple Pay is available are the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom and Australia, for a total of six countries where the service is available. Apple has revealed that it is planning to expand Apple Pay to Hong Kong soon, but the company's next plans for the service is unclear.
A MasterCard roadmap that was leaked earlier in the year revealed that Apple is looking to bring Apple Pay into Brazil and Japan, in addition to Hong Kong, within 2016. However, no time frame has yet been announced for these plans.
"We have announced Hong Kong [and], across the [Asia Pacific] region, we're talking to many partners and banks and evaluating how quickly we can bring Apple Pay to new markets," Bailey said.
China as the first Asian market to receive Apple Pay is logical because it has a massive population and a huge market for Apple products. Singapore and Hong Kong, while smaller markets compared to China, hold many traits similar to the Western consumer markets.
According to Bailey, the first thing they look at in reviewing whether Apple Pay would expand into a country is its market size for Apple devices. In addition, the usage of debit cards and credit cards is evaluated, along with the presence of contactless payment systems.
The focus on Apple-dominated markets may put several countries in Southeast Asia at the bottom of the list for Apple Pay expansion, as cheaper Android smartphones are prevalent in these markets.
Nevertheless, Bailey expressed excitement on the momentum that Apple Pay has gained in markets where it is available, with Apple looking to add to that list of markets as fast as it could.
