(Bloomberg) Apple is set to rival Square after reports emerged that it has been working on a new service that lets merchants accept payment on their iPhones without the need for extra hardware.
Apple is said to have started working on the new feature in 2020 and paid Canadian startup Mobeewave $100 million for the technology.
The new service is expected to use iPhones near field communications chip, which is currently used for Apple Pay.
The iPhone giant is projected to roll out the new system via a software update in the coming months, with the first beta version of iOS 15.4 expected in the near future. The final release of the feature to the customers is expected as soon as spring.
The move happened when Apple was making inroads into payments recently, with the company launching the Apple Card for US customers in 2019. The company is also working on a service that would allow Apple Pay users to buy things and make installment payments for them later.
Samsung also implemented a credit card acceptance on its devices in 2019, using Mobeewave’s payment acceptance technology.
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