Apple iPhones might get contactless payment feature thanks to Canadian startup acquisition

Photo by Thai Nguyen on Unsplash

It might be easier for small business owners with iPhones to accept payments on their mobile devices. The company is reportedly working on a feature that integrates contactless payment into the iPhone. Apple has allegedly been working on the service since 2020 when it acquired Canadian startup Mobeewave, which is known for developing tech that turns a phone into a payment portal.

Mobeewave's technology only required an app and the phone's NFC to work. You just have to type in the amount you want to charge, and then the customer needs to tap their credit card on the back of the phone. Apple has declined to comment on Bloomberg's story, so it's unclear if the feature will work the same way on iPhones. 

The publication's sources couldn't say if the feature would be part of Apple Pay. But the team working on this function is reportedly collaborating with Apple's payments division. We don't know if Apple will launch the service with an existing payment network either.

Bloomberg speculates that Apple could begin rolling this feature out through a software update coming in the next few months. Engadget thinks it could be the final version of iOS 15.4 coming in the spring.

Mobeewave partnered with Samsung before to turn phones into contactless payment terminals. They piloted the feature in Canada and gave the company's point-of-sale service (Samsung POS) a wide release in the country.