UBS has reached an agreement with Apple and the bank’s customers will soon be able to use the tech group’s mobile payment offer. The road to agreement was rocky.
After an open dispute, which resulted in long, tough negotiations, the parties have now agreed: All credit cards from the major Swiss bank UBS should in future be compatible with Apple Pay, as UBS announced on Friday on its Twitter channel.
We look forward to adding Apple Pay to our growing range of mobile payment solutions soon. pic.twitter.com/1Q7467MD10
– UBS Switzerland (@UBSchweiz) April 24, 2020
The largest Swiss bank has also reached an agreement with the US group over a year after its arch rival Credit Suisse. This suggests that Apple has at least partially deviated from the high demands that made a deal impossible in autumn 2018.
Squabble Twint
Instead of using Apple Pay, the banks are banking on their own solutions. This includes their own apps, which you can use to make contactless payments, particularly at UBS with phones that have the Android operating system.
In Switzerland, the financial institutions are also competing with the tech giants with Twint. The cooperation of the banks via this mobile payment solution, which can be linked directly to the account, also fueled suspicions of illegal agreements against Apple Pay and Samsung Pay. At UBS, however, it was said that there was no connection between the announcement on Friday and a corresponding investigation by the Competition Commission.
Competition cash
While UBS negotiated with Apple, Twint was able to report growth again and again and has now grown beyond the startup phase: Last month there was a break with online retailer Galaxus, allegedly because Twint is now also pushing for higher prices.
Apart from online shopping, however, the biggest competition – for Apple Pay as well as for Twint – is cash. The coronavirus pandemic, of all things, could rethink the way people prefer contactless payment methods in the future.
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