Apple Pay prospects in Russia

Known analytical resource in the field of mobile payments PYMNTS.com citing studies Kantar Worldpanel I counted the actual number of users of Apple Pay payment technology in the United States. There were about 600,000 people. These are the people who regularly use Apple Pay. All in all, the US is currently about 14 million Apple Pay potential users. The development of the payment system Apple hampered by lack of terminal contactless payment.

For us, these figures have only informative value, as Apple Pay in Russia is not working and it is possible that this technology will come to us after a long delay, as was the case with the voice assistant Siri.

"MakRadar" asked the expert, the general director of service of mobile payments Pay-Me Vladimir Kanin and discussed with him the prospects of Apple Pay in Russia.

- As Russian law regulates the work of payment systems, such as Apple Pay?

- Humor that Apple Pay is not regulated by the Russian legislation, because Apple Pay is not a payment system in terms of our laws. This technological platform which is relevant to the charges. Of course, it is served in the United States in terms of "payment system" because it has all the features of the payment system, except cards issued. But we have - no. It is, rather, one of the technical methods of contactless payment. By the way, recently the Ministry of Communications has adopted rules for the use

NFC in Russia.

- Apple Pay is embedded in the national payment card system?

- no technological obstacles. Colleagues from the NBTS work tirelessly to translate all transactions in the new scheme. Most recently, on May 27, NSPK joined Visa. When NBTS say that can process contactless payments, the next step is to connect PayPass, payWave, and then, and Apple Pay. But we still have very few points where you can pay a non-contact manner. I assure you, Apple knows the exact number of POS-terminals in Russia, who are able to work with Apple Pay, and will not come until the infrastructure is displayed. We have five of POS-terminals per 1000 population, which is several times less than in Europe.

- What is the benefit of using Apple Pay for sellers?

- The benefit enormous. And Apple is not invented anything new, but, as always, made a lot easier and more convenient. I pay the PayPass - a contactless manner - on a regular basis, and the more points of payment, the easier it is. You will not have to get a card from her purse. Here's the same story, only phone we have with you in your hands. Therefore, Apple Pay, as well as other non-contact methods - are technologies that reduce the time of payment procedure. This is very beneficial for sellers who have large cross. Fast-food, transport, supermarkets. He raised his hand and paid.

- A profitable customers to use Apple Pay?

- For buyers to payment security and speed is added discounts. For example, you can configure the contactless payment so that transport you to pay off that card, which provides discounts on a trip. The store - the one that gives a discount on the purchase. And since all the cards in the smartphone, everything happens on the fly.

- How is Apple Pay by Samsung Pay and Android Pay?

- essentially no difference. In all systems, plastic card attached to your phone, and then go contactless payments. We as providers of payment solutions, with no difference, the smartphone runs on any operating system. We will not say, but if you have iOS, we accept payment, while Android does not accept.

- You and I have discussed the benefits of using Apple Pay for sellers and buyers. Nevertheless, the largest US trading networks, such as Best Buy, Wal-Mart, create their own payment system - CurrentS. What for?

- For a small shop to join the Apple Pay - the right strategy. But the audience at Best Buy, Wal-Mart - tens of millions of customers. Creating their own "internal payment system", which, incidentally, will only work in the stores Best Buy and Wal-Mart, they will not give Apple a transactional fee or Visa. Their scale is hundreds of millions of dollars. An approach that shows Best Buy and Wal-Mart, for a long time and is well known and is called Slosed-Loops. Money, including commission payments, they want to leave yourself to the maximum.

- By January 2016 all US trade points should update the terminals to receive payments, which is about 9 million terminals. If you dream, what Apple share could take with Apple Pay?

- You did not mention an important detail. This is an update of the park terminals to receive cards with chips. The requirement for the regulator reads as follows: "All terminals with 2016 must take the card with a chip." There is no mandatory requirement to accept contactless payments. I do not know what impact the change of the park payment terminals in the US Apple Pay, but I have recently returned from the US and I know that most of the major merchants, without waiting for contactless requirements, order terminals to receive a non-contact payments. And this is where Apple Pay, of course, gets a strong support infrastructure. I think that at least 50% of the US trade outlets will accept contactless payments and Apple Pay will increase significantly.

On Wednesday, May 27, the newspaper The New York Times I published an article about the rivalry between Apple and Google in the mobile payments space. The article says that on June 8 at WWDC, Apple announced changes to Apple Pay. According to the newspaper sources said that in the Apple Pay will "reward system": for each transaction through Apple Pay user will receive certain bonuses. reward system for loyal widely used by banks around the world. For example, Russia's largest bank, Sberbank, has been using the program "Thanks from the Savings Bank," where the user receives a bonus for every purchase on the card, and then exchange them for discounts in partner organizations Sberbank. Perhaps something similar is preparing Apple. For example, Apple Thank.