US pharmacy chain Rite Aid, a member of the MCX retailer-owned mobile payments consortium, will accept Apple Pay and other mobile payment services in its stores from August 15, following its decision to stop accepting NFC payments in the wake of the launch of Apple Pay in October last year.

Other MCX members including Best Buy and Target have also announced support for Apple Pay in the US, despite the consortium requiring members to exclusively support its own yet-to-launch CurrentC mobile payments service, which is reportedly being piloted in-stores this month ahead of its launch in a “mid-sized market” this summer.

“All of the company’s nearly 4,600 stores nationwide will begin accepting mobile payments, including Apple Pay and Google Wallet, starting Saturday, August 15,” Rite Aid says.

“The company will also accept Google’s forthcoming Android Pay. Additionally, all Rite Aid stores will also accept tap-and-pay credit and debit cards.”

“Increasingly, consumers are actively seeking out and incorporating mobile technology into many facets of their life, including their shopping and purchasing decisions,” says Ken Martindale, CEO of Rite Aid stores and president of Rite Aid Corporation.

“By accepting mobile payments, we’re able to offer Rite Aid customers an easy and convenient checkout process which we know is important to them. Investing in mobile technologies is just one piece of Rite Aid’s evolving digital strategy and we will continue to explore, test and implement innovative technologies that will help us better serve our valued customers.”