Since its live launch on October 20, Apple Pay has been an unqualified success. While some retailers have resisted, apparently waiting for competing or proprietary systems, financial institutions have adopted it almost universally. This is in clear contrast with banks' slow reaction to past technological innovations, and many decision-makers have acknowledged that they have learned their lesson from the early days of mobile banking.
A number of banks were slow to realize how many of their customers would want to use their smartphones to check their accounts and even pay bills, and they are determined not to make the same mistake again. Dozens of financial institutions have signed up for Apple Pay, and hundreds more are expected to do so this year.
Early adopters can attest that their customers, especially young adults, are very eager to use Apple Pay. Bank of America, one of the partners upon the initial launch, says that 800,000 customers have already linked 1.1 million credit or debit cards to the system, and the trend is not limited to large institutions.
"You frankly don't want to be left behind," said Massachusetts Credit Union League president Paul Gentile to The Boston Globe. "You want to be where your members are."
Apple Pay requires iOS 8.1 to operate, thus adoption will grow as more users upgrade to iPhone 6. Among retailers, one of the latest partners to join in has been Save Mart Supermarkets, which operates 243 locations in California and Nevada.
Apple support specialists can help businesses across many industries adapt to Cupertino's latest innovations as the company increases its focus on the corporate and financial side of its services.
