Revolut customers in 28 markets can now make fast and convenient purchases in stores, in apps and on websites with Apple Pay on iPhone, Apple Watch, iPad and Mac.

Apple Pay provides Revolut customers with access to an easy, secure and private way to pay in stores, in-app and online via Apple devices. Payments with Apple Pay are faster than payments with traditional debit and credit cards or other payment methods and can be made contactless via iPhone, Apple Watch or Safari on MacBook Pro or MacBook Air with Touch ID, eliminating the need to search for a wallet.

Revolut customers can add their Revolut card to Apple Pay via the Revolut app or via the Wallet app. Also, customers without a plastic card can add a virtual card to Apple Wallet in just a few taps from the Revolut app and start spending instantly, without having to wait for the physical card to arrive in the post. This will enable new customers to sign up and begin spending with Apple Pay in minutes.

Security and privacy are at the core of Apple Pay. When you use a Revolut debit card with Apple Pay, the actual card numbers are not stored on the device, nor on Apple servers. Instead, a unique Device Account Number is assigned, encrypted and securely stored in the Secure Element on your device. Each transaction is authorized with a one-time unique dynamic security code.

Arthur Johanet, Product Owner for Card Payments at Revolut said:
“Revolut’s ultimate goal is to give our customers a useful tool to manage every aspect of their financial lives, and the ability to make payments quickly, conveniently and securely is vital to achieving this. Our customers across Europe have been requesting Apple Pay for a long time, so we are delighted to continue our rollout with 12 additional markets. This is a very positive step forward in enabling even more of our customers to use their money in the way that they want to.”

Apple Pay is easy to set up and users will continue to receive all of the rewards and benefits offered by Revolut’s cards.

With iPhone and Apple Watch, customers can pay with Apple Pay in stores, restaurants, taxis, vending machines and many more places. When shopping in apps or on the web in Safari with Apple Pay, there’s no need to manually fill out lengthy account forms or repeatedly type in shipping and billing information. Every Apple Pay purchase is authenticated with just a glance or a touch with Face ID or Touch ID, or a device's passcode.

The study, conducted by GoCardless in the UK, France, Germany and Spain, found that nearly half of UK consumers (43%) said that “speed and ease of payment” was the most important factor when paying for something online, compared to less than a fifth in Spain (17%) and one third in France (32%) and Germany (33%).

Yet shoppers in all markets placed high value on a secure checkout process: French shoppers showed the greatest preference for security (62%), followed closely by German (61%), Spanish (58%) and UK (55%).

The research also found that 44% of UK shoppers had abandoned an online order because of complex or lengthy security, while 48% had done so in Germany, 40% in Spain and 33% in France.

The research is published ahead of the introduction of a new, European-wide, two-stage verification process coming into force from September 2019 as part of PSD2.

Considering the potential impact of SCA on UK consumers, nearly half (45%) of people would be frustrated with a favourite brand that introduced new security processes during online checkout and a fifth (23%) would shop less with that brand if it introduced new security measures. Interestingly, the need to give away complex security information makes as many people feel suspicious (40%) as safe (40%).

Duncan Barrigan, VP product at GoCardless, says: "Protecting shoppers from fraud when they pay online is crucial, and new regulation which achieves this should be welcomed. The flipside is that these measures, if implemented badly, could significantly disrupt consumers and lead to a significant conversion drop off for businesses."

With major retailers like Amazon already sounding the alarm, the European Banking Auhtority last week accepted that some merchants may require "limited additional time to allow issuers to migrate to authentication approaches that are compliant with SCA...and acquirers to migrate their merchants to solutions that support SCA". The regulator says it will set an ultimate deadline for conversion later this year.

Under the MOU, businesses on Zilingo’s platform, which are mostly small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), will be able to access UOB’s banking solutions through the e-commerce platform. The greater access to banking solutions will enable Zilingo’s merchants and manufacturers across the region to manage their cash flow better and to grow their businesses more efficiently and easily.

Ms Ankiti Bose, CEO and Co-founder, Zilingo, said, “Through this collaboration with UOB, we want to reaffirm our commitment towards empowering merchants and manufacturers with everything they need to run their business. Where businesses may find difficulty in accessing capital due to insufficient financial records, Zilingo’s unique position as a connector of the fashion supply chain will allow us to leverage a bird’s eye view of the supply chain to make a comprehensive assessment of the business’ capabilities and value proposition”.

Mr Choo Kee Siong, Head of Industry Groups, Group Commercial Banking, UOB, said, “At UOB, we have been working with various ecosystem partners to offer our banking products and services to companies across entire supply chains, helping them pursue growth strategies and seize business opportunities. Through our MOU with Zilingo, fashion businesses across ASEAN will be able to access our comprehensive range of banking solutions seamlessly to meet their operational and financial needs.”

In addition to supporting Zilingo’s merchants, UOB will also explore support for the e-commerce platform in a number of other areas, from cash management and foreign exchange services to workplace banking services.

TransferWise’s borderless debit card first launched to customers in the UK and Europe in April 2018. Since then cardholders have made more than 15 million transactions and deposited more than $10 billion.

TransferWise's launch in the US, comes just weeks after fellow UK challenger Monzo announced it would open up shop later this year and Germany's N26 promised to make a splash in just a matter of weeks.

Taavet Hinrinkus, co-founder and Chairman, TransferWise says: "Our goal is to offer bank details for every country in the world through one borderless account — the world’s first global account. Since launching in Europe we’ve seen extraordinary customer take-up, with over $10 billion held in deposits so far.”

TransferWise is unperturbed by the logistical complexities of breaking into the US market. Hinrikus points to independent research commissioned by the firm that compared sending and spending money abroad from the TransferWise account and debit card with top US banks and PayPal. The findings revealed that the TransferWise card makes it four times cheaper to spend on their debit card and up to 12 times cheaper to send money internationally from their account.

The firm has hired Tan France, one of the presenters on Netflix’s hit TV show Queer Eye, to be the face of the borderless account for the launch.

With Apple Pay on iPhone, Apple Watch, iPad and Mac, customers can make fast and convenient purchases in stores, in apps and on websites.

Customers living in Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Estonia, Greece, Lithuania, Liechtenstein, Latvia, Malta, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia and Slovenia will be able to use their Monese cards with Apple Pay, wherever Apple Pay is accepted globally. Customers can switch between their Monese cards, within their Wallet app, as easily as they would do within the Monese app. Monese now offers Apple Pay across 27 European countries, which also includes the UK, France, Germany, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, Ireland, Italy, Poland, Spain and Sweden.

Security and privacy is at the core of Apple Pay. When you use a credit or debit card with Apple Pay, the actual card numbers are not stored on the device, nor on Apple servers. Instead, a unique Device Account Number is assigned, encrypted and securely stored in the Secure Element on your device. Each transaction is authorized with a one-time unique dynamic security code.

Norris Koppel, CEO and Founder at Monese, says: “We are delighted to be offering one of the easiest and more secure methods of payment to our customers in Apple Pay countries. Many of our customers travel the world for study, work, family, or retirement. We know that these customers rely heavily on digital payments, including contactless payments. We also know from speaking to our iOS customers that there is a very strong appetite for Apple Pay and for most it’s an essential.”

Apple Pay is easy to set up and users will continue to receive all of the rewards and benefits offered by Monese debit cards.

With iPhone and Apple Watch, customers can pay with Apple Pay in stores, restaurants, taxis, vending machines and many more places. When shopping in apps or on the web in Safari with Apple Pay, there’s no need to manually fill out lengthy account forms or repeatedly type in shipping and billing information. Every Apple Pay purchase is authenticated with just a glance or a touch with Face ID or Touch ID, or a device's passcode.

The card, which is linked to the Gimi app, gives young people the opportunity to spend their own money, while parents get both transparency and control through the Gimi app.

In Sweden, more than 10,000 parents are already on the waiting list for the new card.

Philip Haglund, CEO and founder of Gimi, says, “We want to provide children with a card to spend their money with whilst educating them to become smart consumers.

“Just like driving a car or learning how to ride a bike, you need to practice to become good at something. The Gimi card is the first product of its kind to launch in Sweden and was developed to help children practice handling money before they step out into the adult world, where they are faced with more complex financial decisions,” continues Philip.

Gimi is one of the world's most widely used pocket money apps, with over one million downloads. The app is used to manage weekly money and chores, but also has educational content and functions teaching children about the basics of money.

The Gimi card, which is produced in cooperation with Mastercard, is available for 39 SEK a month.

Peter Olbing, Head of Business Development for the Nordic and Baltic countries at Mastercard, comments, “It is important that young people are included in our financial society and get access to digital money. Gimi's work on spreading financial education is something we strongly believe in and want to support.”

The Gimi card is now available for those who live in Sweden and is set to become available throughout several other European markets within the next 12 months.