ING Direct and Macquarie Bank are the latest financial service providers to join the smallish list of Australian companies offering Apple Pay support.
Apple Pay is available on all Macquarie debit and credit cards, and on ING Direct's Orange Everyday cards.
Apple Pay is Apple's mobile-centric payment solution. After enrolling a compatible card in the Apple Wallet app, you're able to use your iPhone or Apple Watch to pay at contactless terminals - such as those used by PayWave - or within support apps. These payments are authenticated through the use of the iPhone's Touch ID fingerprint reader.
Apple Pay is compatible with the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus, 6s and 6s Plus, 7 and 7 Plus, and SE. In addition, Apple Pay can also be used with your Apple Watch and on Touch Bar-enabled MacBook Pros.
American Express and ANZ are the only two major financial institutions to support Apple Pay in Australia, but a number of smaller providers including BeyondBank, CUA, Bank Australia, and Defence Bank are all on board with Apple's contactless payment solution.
Australia's three other major banks - Commonwealth Bank, NAB, and Westpac - are currently involved in an extended dispute with Apple over contactless payment technology. The banks in question having been seeking to negotiate with Apple to gain open access to the iPhone's NFC functionality that powers Apple Pay. At present, Apple Pay is the only service that can make use of the phone's NFC hardware, which Apple says is a security precaution.
Alex Choros
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