Like all mobile wallets before, Apple Pay struggles

By | June 19, 2022

Last Updated on June 19, 2022 by Craig Allen Keefner

47 percent of Apple Pay users were denied by a participating merchant, study says.

Source: arstechnica.com

One piece to the puzzle that might keep banks paying into Apple’s platform is that customers seem to use credit cards more often on Apple Pay. According to Phoenix, 82 percent of Apple Pay users linked a credit card to their accounts, and 53 percent linked a debit card. “Among those that linked both a credit and a debit card to Apple Pay, 67 percent reported that the credit card was the first-card—thus becoming the default card.” Phoenix wrote. “56 percent rarely or never change the default when making a purchase.”

That behavior is interesting on a number of levels, not least because when a credit card is used, banks get higher interchange fees and consumers are better protected from fraud by federal credit card regulations. The only party losing out is the retailers. (Well, until they pass the costs back on to the customer). “Banks always prefer cardholders utilize credit for the higher interchange the banks receive,” Sloane wrote to Ars. “Consumers often pick credit over debit for higher risk transactions since credit has greater protections under [Regulation] Z. Mercator consumer data indicates that many smartphone owners are not confident that the smartphone is safe for payments, which may incline them to enable credit cards before debit cards (or maybe it’s for the rewards!).”

Author: Craig Allen Keefner

Craig Allen Keefner is an industry analyst, content strategist, and longtime authority on self-service kiosks, digital signage, unattended payment systems, and interactive technology. He manages content and industry strategy for Kiosk Industry and The Industry Group, with a focus on kiosk software, hardware-software integration, accessibility, payment compliance, healthcare kiosks, restaurant self-service, and emerging AI automation. Craig has covered the self-service and kiosk industry since the 1990s, tracking how public-facing terminals move from concept to field deployment. His work combines industry research, vendor analysis, operator conversations, standards tracking, trade show coverage, and practical experience with the real-world constraints of kiosk deployments. https://www.linkedin.com/in/kiosk