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Apple Pay could be introduced to UK retailers ‘in the first half of 2015’, latest reports have suggested.
According to the Telegraph, Apple is currently in talks with a number of British banks over plans to introduce Apple Pay to the UK before the summer.
Despite progress reportedly being with all major banks, a number of hurdles are said to have been hit over terms and accessibility concerns.
Citing unnamed sources, the latest reports have claimed negotiations with at least one leading bank have “proved tricky” due to concerns with the data Apple will be given access to.
Despite these stumbles, it is expect all UK banks will work out deals to support Apple Pay given the platform’s early successes since being introduced to the US late this year.
Impressively one per cent of all payment transactions in the US are already being made through Apple Pay.
While this is still lower than the four per cent attributed to Google Wallet, Google’s service has been available since 2011 and Apple Pay is still currently restricted to use with just the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus handsets.
Although yet to hit retailers, the recently confirmed Apple Watch will also support the contactless payment system.
Related: What is Apple Pay?
Although Apple has yet to detail an exact date rollout plans, the Cupertino-based company has repeatedly expressed plans to make Apple Pay a globally-available platform.
In a recent job listing, the iPad Air 2 maker refered to Apple Pay as “a new and exciting area in Apple that is set to expand across Europe, Middle East, India and Africa.”
With Apple Pay letting users sync their account details to their compatible devices, users can make small fee in-store payments simply by tapping their phone to wireless terminals.
Apple takes a small charge from each transaction made through the service, a fee which needs to be agreed with each participating bank.
