Lower fees, better service, and faster transactions. We won’t need to carry paper money and credit cards any more – just our cellphones. Can it be real? More secure? Can we trust it? All this and more is presented in this intriguing story relevant to anyone who carries credit cards or accepts them at their businesses.
Source: Washington Post, December 21, 2015.
Apple Pay was launched last year, with lots of fanfare and support by the credit card industry. Partnering with the banks that issue credit cards overcame the resistance that early entrants in mobile payments had faced. It also solved critical technology and infrastructure problems and offered the credit-card industry a new avenue for growth.
Apple Pay is, however, a Trojan horse. Once Apple has established its platform, it won’t need the banks and credit cards any more. It will be able take advantage of another new technology, the blockchain, to offer an alternative payment option.