Apple has been working on a new service allowing small businesses to accept credit card payments directly from the iPhone without using any additional terminals.
According to a Bloomberg report, the company has been working on this feature since 2020; then they acquired the Canadian startup Mobeewave for USD 100 million; which developed a new technology allowing smartphones devices with NFC modules to accept payment by bank cards. NFC is already in use on the iPhone for Apple Pay payments.
In some countries iPhone, merchants can already use special terminals connected to the smartphone via Bluetooth. This new feature will turn the iPhone into a payment terminal itself, allowing small businesses like foodservice owners and kiosks to accept funds from bank cards or compatible smartphones.
Apple will implement software updates in the coming months. The company expected to present the first beta version of iOS 15.4 shortly; and the release for the mass user will take place, presumably in the spring. Still no comments from Apple.
Apple has been trying to enter the payments market from 2019 the US; They’ve launched the Apple Card, Apple Cash virtual service for digital transactions; and Apple Pay service that allows you to pay for purchases in installments.
The iPhone won’t be the first smartphone to use Mobeewave technology to accept payments. Samsung, backed the startup until it was sold to Apple, was using bank card payments on some of its devices since early 2019.
