Apple Card will drive Apple Wallet adoption
Apple Card
During Apple Special Event on March 25, 2019, Apple finally announced the widely expected credit card. According to Apple’s CEO Tim Cook, the new credit card “Apple Card” would be “the most significant change in the credit card experience in 50 years.”
“The most significant change in the credit card experience in 50 years”
Tim Cook
Wanting to take the Apple Pay experience even further, Apple completely rethinks everything about the credit card.
Apple Card represents all the things Apple stands for: “simplicity, transparency, and privacy.”
Unlike other credit cards, Apple Card is the only credit card designed to take advantage of the power of the iPhone. The plastic (titanium, in this case) is secondary.
Working with Apple Pay, the Apple Card is the simplest, most secure and private way to pay. Using it is extremely simple:
- Step 1: Find the contactless symbol indicating Apple Pay is accepted
- Step 2:
o For iPhone X: Double click side button and glance at screen to authenticate using Face ID
o For iPhone 6 to 8: rest finger on Touch ID
- Step 3: Hold top of the iPhone near a reader (POS). The credit card is automatically selected.
To authorize, users do it with Face ID or Touch ID, two of the most advanced security technologies in the industry.
Apple Pay
Apple launched Apple Pay with the intention to replace the physical wallet. They claim Apple Pay growth has been — literally — off the charts, expecting to surpass 10 Billion transactions worldwide.
While some analysts consider that the growth of Apple Pay in the US has been tepid, as the table below shows, it has been very successful outside the US.
Merchants accepting Apple Pay:
US= 70%
Canada = 80%
UK: 85%
Spain: 80%
Poland: 95%
Russia: 85%
Australia: 99%
(By the end of 2019, they plan is to launch in more than 40 countries)
Apple Wallet
Of course, not every everyone in the industry is buying Tim’s words about the “most significant change in the credit card experience in 50 years”.
But Apple Card lives on the iPhone and in the Wallet app. And Apple Card promises a 2% cash back reward to all purchases made from Apple Wallet. That makes all kinds of new things possible. By tying up the Apple Card directly to Apple Pay, Apple aims to drive its mobile wallet adoption.
Apple Card promises a 2% cash back reward to all purchases made from Apple Wallet.
Apple Wallet adoption, which has been slower than some have expected, would definitely get a push from Apple Card usage.
Apple Wallet is not only for credit cards and debit cards; users can use passes on the iPhone to check in for flights, get and redeem rewards, get into movies, or redeem coupons. Passes can include useful information like the balance on a coffee card, an expiration date of a coupon, seat number for a concert, and more. Passes included in the Apple Wallet inherit all the advantages previously explained for credit cards in general, and of course, Apple Card in particular.
Passes are extremely secure and simple to use. Just like Apple Card, contactless passes (NFC-enabled) can be authenticated using Face ID or Touch ID, and can automatically be selected when held near a pass reader.
Passes are also designed to take advantage of the power of the iPhone. Just like Apple Card, passes also represent all the things Apple stands for: “simplicity, transparency, and privacy.”
