Global money service TransferWise adds Apple Pay support in US, other countries
TransferWise on Thursday announced U.S. support for sending money via Apple Pay, plus similar compatibility in Australia, Switzerland, France, Spain, Ireland, and Italy.
Previously the Apple Pay option was limited to U.K. residents, Reuters said on Thursday. The change means that more iPhone and iPad owners can send funds without adding a card or bank account to the company’s mobile app.
Currently, somewhere over 10 percent of TransferWise iOS transactions to and from British pounds are made using Apple Pay, the company said.
While relatively unknown in the U.S., TransferWise has major financial backers such as Sir Richard Branson and venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz. Its service is meant to be both cheaper and easier than wiring through a bank.
In the U.S. one of its main competitors is Western Union, which added mobile Apple Pay in April and has supported it at physical locations since Jan. 2015.
This fall’s iOS 11 will add support for direct person-to-person Apple Pay transfers, free using debit, or with a 3 percent fee on credit cards. The service may not allow the sort of large-scale, international transfers possible through TransferWise, however.