UK bank Barclays is the only major holdout from the launch of Apple Pay in the UK. From next month, users with iPhone 6, iPhone 6 Plus or Apple Watch in the United Kingdom will be able to use the NFC mobile payments chip inside their iPhone to use Apple Pay.
Apple announced yesterday a whole swathe of partners, including Santander, HSBC and Lloyds. The notable omission from the ‘big four’ British banks is Barclays. Barclays’ Twitter support has come under fire in the aftermath from customers and has issued the following statement, which shows that all hope is not lost for Apple Pay for iPhone users who bank with Barclays.
Although there is no firm confirmation or details, Barclays is effectively saying that negotiations and talks are still in progress. On a purely speculative basis, it is likely that Barclays will announce support soon as overall support for Apple Pay from partners in the UK is strong.
Apple Pay in the UK will launch with over 250,000 merchants — which is more than what Apple had signed for the original launch of the mobile payments in the US. With iOS 9, Apple Pay will become integrated into the new Wallet app.
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In case you are as angry as the Twitter feedback, here is the list of following banks are confirmed to launch with Apple Pay in July:
- American Express
- First Direct
- HSBC
- Nationwide
- NatWest
- Royal Bank of Scotland
- Santander
- Ulster Bank
The following have announced they will support Apple Pay, but are ‘coming soon’ which likely means they will miss the July launch date. At the keynote, Apple says the following banks will be onboard by the fall.
- Bank of Scotland
- Halifax
- Lloyds Bank
- M&S Bank
- mbna
- TSB
Expect more banks, retail stores and merchant partners to be announced in the coming weeks and months.
