Follow the money: Who benefits from the UK’s Apple Pay crackdown?

The UK wants to take a chunk out of Apple Pay, as the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) moves to force Apple to open access to its 12-year-old contactless payment system to rivals. The regulator has published a consultation document that proposes requiring Apple to allow competitors to use the near-field communication (NFC) chip on its devices to enable alternative payment systems on iOS on “fair, reasonable, transparent and non-discriminatory terms.” The regulator says action is required because UK businesses have complained that Apple’s existing NFC access arrangements are not commercially viable. 30% of UK adults use Apple Pay? The regulator also revealed some interesting statistics concerning use of contactless tech in the UK: Contactless payments represent 39% of all payments, compared to just 3% of transactions a decade ago. 62% of adults currently use a digital wallet. 50% of those use Apple Wallet — which implies that around 30% of UK adults use Apple Pay. “These proposals open the door to more innovation, more choice and economic growth, including in the UK’s important fintech sector,” said Sarah Cardell, chief executive of the CMA. It’s not clear if those companies…

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