As it stands, Apple Pay is only available in four countries around the world – the US, UK, Canada, and Australia. We have seen Apple launch new services in countries by stages, but given that this is a new method of payments in which banks, credit card issuing companies, and retailers need to be on board, the rollout is expectedly slower.
That being said, a recent tweet by CNBC has revealed that Apple Pay will be making its way to China by February 2016. It is no secret that China is one of Apple’s bigger markets and that they have been planning a launch of Apple Pay in the country for a while now, but with this report it looks like we have a rough date to look forward to, assuming it is true.
It is interesting that Apple has chosen early 2016 to launch the service. Chinese New Year will be celebrated on the 8th of February 2016, so perhaps Apple is hoping a launch prior to the festivities will prompt users to use the service when they’re out and about shopping for new clothes and presents for relatives.
Apple rumored launch also seems to coincide with an earlier rumor that Samsung Pay could be aiming for a Q1 2016 launch as well. Samsung Pay is only available in the US and South Korea at the moment, but the rumor suggested that it could expand to China, Spain, and the UK in Q1. Assuming they do, the number of markets both Apple Pay and Samsung Pay will cover will be tied at 5 each.