Australian banks still to demand opening up access to Apple Pay

The Commonwealth Bank of Australia, National Australia Bank, Westpac Bank, and Bendigo demand non-exclusive access to the near-field communication (NFC) chip, standardised security for all mobile payments systems, and price transparency on transaction costs within Australia.

To sustain their negotiation, they have also created a joint response called Application for authorisation of limited collective negotiation in relation to mobile wallet and mobile payment systems: Response to interested party submissions, dated September 30 and published by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC). A similar request was made in July 2016, however ACCC refused to grant the banks interim authorisation to collectively negotiate, saying it needed more time to come to a decision.

Moreover, the banks noted that they have received support from Eftpos, MasterCard, the Australian Retailers Association, Heritage Bank, the Australian Payments Clearing Association, Australian Settlements Limited, Coles, Bluechain, Indue, and Tyro Payments.

According to banks ‘spokesman, access to Apple Pays NFC function could be used also to support public transport, airlines, and store loyalty and rewards programs, among other applications.

Apple argued that opening up access to Apple Pay would make its mobile payments system less secure and accused the banks of having a limited understanding of Apple Pay.