Apple Pay now being used by 2,500 bank locations in US, will launch in the UK in July

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During Apple's WWDC 2015 keynote event today, Apple provided an update on their Apple Pay service. The company revealed that 2,500 bank locations in the US support Apple Pay and that it will launch in the UK in July, confirming earlier rumors. Apple stated that the UK support will come to eight of the country's popular banks, with more coming this fall:

M&S Bank
Bank of Scotland
Halifax
Ulster Bank
NatWest
American Express
Santander
Royal Bank of Scotlank
Nationwide
HSBC,
First Direct
TSB,
MBNA,
Lloyds Band

Apple Pay will support 70% of the UK's credit and debit cards. 250,000 UK merchant locations will support Apple Pay, including the London transportation system

Apple also repeated the news that Apple Pay support will be coming to Discover Card owners this fall in the US. An all new Square reader is launching this fall with Apple Pay support, with pre-orders starting today. Apple claims that there will be one million Apple Pay locations by July. Developers are seeing 2 times of an increase in their checkout rates when using Apple Pay. The Pinterest app will also add support for Apple Pay for buying from partner stores.

For iOS 9, Apple Pay will add support for store credit and debit cards along with rewards programs from stores like Kohls, and Walgreens. More retailer such as Trader Joes, Baskin Robbins, and JC Penney plan to add Apple Pay support. Finally, Apple is changing the name of its Passport app to Wallet.

Press Releases:

Apple Pay Coming to the UK

Bringing the Easy, Secure & Private Way to Pay to Customers Internationally

SAN FRANCISCO — June 8, 2015 — Apple® today announced that starting next month, Apple Pay™ will be available to customers in the UK, bringing them the easy, secure and private way to pay. Whether buying groceries, grabbing coffee, picking up lunch or taking the Tube, UK shoppers will soon be able to make many of their daily purchases with Apple Pay. At launch, over 250,000 locations will accept Apple Pay, with support from eight of the UK's most established banks, across all of the major credit and debit card networks.

"Apple Pay has quickly become a big part of millions of users' everyday shopping routines, providing a simpler, faster and more secure way to pay," said Eddy Cue, Apple's senior vice president of Internet Software and Services. "We're thrilled to bring Apple Pay to the UK with support at launch from the most popular banks, an incredible roster of merchants and many of our users' favorite apps."

Paying in stores or within apps has never been easier. In stores, shopping with Apple Pay is fast and there are no extra steps — simply hold your iPhone® near the contactless reader while keeping a finger on Touch ID™. With Apple Watch™ just double click the side button and hold the face up to the contactless reader to make a purchase right from your wrist. Shopping in apps with Apple Pay can be as simple as the touch of a finger, so iPhone and iPad® users can pay for physical goods and services, including apparel, electronics, health and beauty products, tickets and more.

Security and privacy are at the core of Apple Pay. In the UK, users will soon receive all the benefits of protecting personal information, transaction data, and credit and debit card information with the industry-leading security Apple Pay brings. When adding a credit or debit card, the actual card numbers are not stored on the device, nor on Apple servers. Instead, a unique Device Account Number is assigned, encrypted and securely stored in the Secure Element on your device, and each transaction is authorized with a one-time unique dynamic security code.

Apple Pay will support UK credit and debit cards from American Express, MasterCard and Visa Europe, issued by many of the UK's most popular banks, including first direct, HSBC, NatWest, Nationwide Building Society, Royal Bank of Scotland, Santander and Ulster Bank. Other major issuing banks will follow by this fall, including Bank of Scotland, Coutts, Halifax, Lloyds Bank, MBNA, M&S Bank and TSB Bank.

"As part of our goal to be number one, we are absolutely focused on giving our customers the best and most innovative experience possible," said Ross McEwan, CEO of Royal Bank of Scotland. "Whether on the high street, in a small shop or on the go within apps, Apple Pay offers a simple and secure way to pay. We are pleased to be among the first UK banks to offer this service to our customers."

Starting in July, iPhone 6, iPhone 6 Plus and Apple Watch users will be able to make purchases anywhere contactless payments are accepted. In addition to the 39 Apple Stores in the UK, leading locations for everyday shopping that will accept Apple Pay include Boots UK, BP, Costa Coffee, Dune, JD Sports, KFC UK & Ireland, Liberty, LIDL, Marks & Spencer (M&S), McDonald's UK, Nando's, New Look, Post Office, Pret A Manger, SPAR, Starbucks, SUBWAY stores, Wagamama and Waitrose. Transport for London will also accept Apple Pay, so you can use your iPhone or Apple Watch to pay for your travel or daily commute.

"We are proud to be one of the first retailers to introduce Apple Pay at our stores across the UK. Whether customers are enjoying our special food range or our clothing collections, our early introduction of Apple Pay will provide them with a seamless and secure way of checking out," said Marc Bolland, CEO of Marks & Spencer.

In apps, checkout is simple and there is no need to manually fill out lengthy account forms or repeatedly type in shipping and billing information. Apps that will accept Apple Pay in the UK include Addison Lee, Airbnb, Argos, Booking.com, British Airways, Domino's, easyJet, Hailo, HotelTonight, hungryhouse, JD Sports, Just Eat, lastminute.com, Miss Selfridge, Ocado, Stubhub, thetrainline.com, Top 10, Topshop, Uncover, Vueling, YPlan, Zalando and Zara, among others. When paying for goods and services within apps, Apple Pay is compatible with iPhone 6, iPhone 6 Plus, iPad Air® 2 and iPad mini™ 3.

Apple revolutionized personal technology with the introduction of the Macintosh in 1984. Today, Apple leads the world in innovation with iPhone, iPad, the Mac and Apple Watch. Apple's three software platforms — iOS, OS X and watchOS — provide seamless experiences across all Apple devices and empower people with breakthrough services including the App Store, Apple Music, Apple Pay and iCloud. Apple's 100,000 employees are dedicated to making the best products on earth, and to leaving the world better than we found it.

Apple Pay Giving Shoppers Even More Ways to Pay

Expanding Benefits with Merchant Rewards & Store-Issued Cards

SAN FRANCISCO — June 8, 2015 — Apple® today announced Apple Pay™ is making everyday payments even better by adding support for rewards programs and store-issued credit and debit cards with iOS 9. Apple Pay will also give shoppers more ways to pay in the US, expanding merchant acceptance to over one million locations next month and bringing support for Discover this fall. With this addition, Apple Pay will accept credit and debit cards across all major card networks, issued by the most popular banks, representing 98 percent of all credit card purchase volume in the US.

"Apple Pay has kicked off a new era of payments and our users love the incredibly easy, secure and private way to pay," said Eddy Cue, Apple's senior vice president of Internet Software and Services. "We're bringing our customers the most requested features with support for rewards and store-issued cards, and expanding how and where Apple Pay is accepted, which truly transforms the way people pay."

With the addition of Apple Pay, the Passbook® app in iOS has become much more than simply a place for keeping coupons, gift cards, boarding passes and tickets. Starting this fall with iOS 9, Passbook evolves to become Wallet, bringing additional options at checkout with Apple Pay support for rewards and store-issued credit and debit cards.

To get the most out of purchases, users simply add participating rewards and store-issued cards to the Wallet app and seamlessly use them at checkout with Apple Pay. This fall, more than 80 million active members of Walgreens Balance Rewards program, the nation's largest drugstore loyalty program, will be able to easily and securely use their rewards with Apple Pay. Additionally, Kohl's Department Stores will begin rolling out Apple Pay to its 30 million Yes2You Reward program members. Others bringing rewards programs to Apple Pay users include Coca-Cola, Dunkin' Donuts, Panera Bread and Wegmans Food Markets. Favorite store-issued cards available to Apple Pay users will include BJ's Wholesale Club, Kohl's Department Stores and JCPenney, with many more to come.

"Our customers around the country already depend on Dunkin' Donuts as their all-day, everyday stop to keep them going," said Nigel Travis, chairman and CEO, Dunkin' Brands. "We can't think of a better way to reward their loyalty than by offering Apple Pay and the option to use personalized rewards with their purchases."

"Providing our shoppers with innovative ways to pay while offering flexibility, supports our commitment to delivering a simple and convenient customer experience," said Kevin Mansell, Kohl's chairman, CEO and president. "By integrating with Apple Pay in all of our stores, Kohl's customers can choose how they want to pay, whether using their Kohl's Charge or Yes2You Rewards loyalty points, payments are easy and secure."

Apple Pay launched last October with 200,000 locations in the US and will soon surpass one million. Just a few of the newest merchants accepting Apple Pay in stores this year include Baskin Robbins, Best Buy, BevMo!, Big Lots, Dunkin' Donuts, El Pollo Loco, EXPRESS, Forever 21, JCPenney, Johnny Rockets, Kohl's Department Stores, LEGO Brand Retail, Levi's, Peet's Coffee, Trader Joe's and White Castle. Additionally, today Square announced that it will launch its new Square Reader this fall, which will enable even more small businesses to accept Apple Pay.

Popular apps continue to add Apple Pay support so checkout can happen with a single touch. New apps bringing Apple Pay to customers include Best Buy, Delta Air Lines' Fly Delta app, Dunkin' Donuts, Gilt, HauteLook, Kickstarter, Munchery, Nordstromrack.com and zulily. Pinterest will also launch Buyable Pins later this month, so users can purchase millions of items from over a thousand stores like Cole Haan, Macy's and Neiman Marcus from right within the Pinterest app with Apple Pay, only on iOS.

WWDC 2015