Dan Pražák Apple Pay has been very popular in the world since its launch in September 2014, and as soon as competing services such as Google Play (formerly Android Pay) or Samsung Pay were added to it, mobile payment became commonplace for many. In the Czech Republic, however, even after 4 years, the Apple payment service is still not available, and paradoxically, it is not the fault of domestic banks, but rather Apple itself. However, we still tested Apple Pay in Czech stores so that we could give you impressions of paying with an iPhone even before the speculated early launch.
In contactless payments, the Czech Republic is literally a superpower, in Europe we are even at the very top of the ranking. It is all the more strange that Apple Pay is still not available in our market, especially if we take into account that Google joined us with its service almost a year ago. All contactless payment terminals in Czech stores support payment with an iPhone, so Apple is essentially offered perfect conditions for an immediate launch. Czech banks are also in favor of Apple Pay and, as they told us in their statements, they are only waiting for Apple itself.
In the Czech Republic, maybe soon
At the beginning of this year, there was a lot of speculation about the entry of Apple Pay into the Czech Republic. She took care of stirring up the discussion report to investors from Moneta Money Bank, where an item appeared in the 18-month forward plan indicating the launch of mobile payments on the iOS platform during the first to second quarter of this year. In the subsequent official statement of the press department, we learned that Moneta has ambitions to become the first domestic bank supporting Apple Pay, but that the decision on the possible launch of the service is entirely on Apple's side.
But the topic revived again a few weeks ago. It's a Czech magazine smartmania.cz, from which the popular foreign server 9to5mac also received the information, came with the news that the launch of Apple Pay in the Czech Republic is imminent. Moneta Money Bank featured in the report again, as the first bank to offer Apple Pay to its clients. Allegedly, the launch should take place already in August, that is, if everything goes according to plan. When requesting additional, more detailed information, we received the following response from the bank:
The decision on the eventual launch of the Apple Pay service in the Czech Republic depends solely on Apple. If you are interested in more detailed information, I recommend contacting Apple directly. In the area of safe and convenient mobile phone payments, we are now focusing on the further development of the Google Pay service, which we launched in November 2017 as the first major bank in the country.
Apple Pay is addictive, we tried it
In connection with the possible early launch, we decided to test Apple Pay as a priority. The virtual bank Boon served us for this. and its English version of the application. In order to add the card to Apple Wallet, it was necessary to switch the iPhone to a different region in the settings, specifically to the United Kingdom. To download the application, we were forced to create a new, English Apple ID. However, the process of setting up Apple Pay is very simple - just click a single button in the bank's application and you can pay with your iPhone at once.
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Paying via Apple Pay is really addictive and has never let us down during the entire testing period. It works on all terminals for contactless payments in the Czech Republic, without a single hesitation and, above all, lightning fast. A huge advantage then lies in security, where you have to authorize each payment with your fingerprint, face scan or access code to the device. After all, this is also a benefit compared to contactless debit cards and Google Pay, where payments up to CZK 500 do not need to be confirmed in any way and can be made by anyone. Overall, Apple Pay is the most user-friendly - it's fast, authorization is basically instant, and you don't even need to wake up or unlock your phone - just hold your iPhone to the terminal and everything you need will be displayed immediately.
This brings us to one fundamental difference between the iPhone X and other Apple phone models. While Touch ID is perfect for payments, the same cannot be said for Face ID. On the iPhone X, you must first activate Apple by double-pressing the power button (you can also hold the phone to the terminal, but this does not speed up the process), then allow yourself to be verified by a face scan, and only then hold the phone to the terminal. In contrast, an iPhone with Touch ID just needs to be held up to the terminal with a finger on the sensor and Apple Pay is immediately activated, the payment is authorized with a fingerprint and the payment is made - there is no need to click a single button or manipulate the phone in any other way.
It also works on Watch
Of course, Apple Watch owners can also pay with their Apple Watch. On those, Apple Pay is activated by double-pressing the side button. After that, you just put the display to the terminal and the payment is made. Paying via Watch is even more addictive and convenient, as there is no need to reach for the phone in your pocket. You don't need to authorize payments - Apple Watch detects that it's on the user's wrist, if it's taken off, it locks immediately, and a passcode must be entered when it's put back on the wrist.
So let's hope that Apple Pay will visit the domestic market soon. Banks and stores are ready, only waiting for Apple. We can only speculate whether Moneta will be the first to offer an Apple payment service. If so, then other Czech banks such as Česká spořitelna, ČSOB, Komerční banka and others will surely join it soon.
How does it work if I have more of those cards? After attaching, do I have to choose which card I pay from? Thanks for the reply.
So there is no risk that I put the watch in and the terminal tells me that I have to insert the card into the terminal? :-) Somehow I don't trust my bank…
I'm really looking forward to it... I don't like pulling out my wallet...
There is no danger, this is of course treated. It will probably be because every payment is authorized (by fingerprint, face, code), so that the protection element is not activated, when it is necessary to insert the card into the terminal once in a while and confirm that I know the PIN.
Česká spořitelna's statement on Facebook: "Good day.... Yes, we want to offer our clients the option of paying by mobile phone as soon as possible. We are communicating with Apple about this functionality. As soon as this possibility of paying with a mobile phone is up to date, you will find out everything on our Facebook. Viktor K."
On my AW2, double pressing the side button does not activate anything, is it possible that it needs to be turned on somewhere? thanks for the info
How please? "that in contactless payments, the Czech Republic is literally a superpower in Europe" my last visit to Brno (otherwise a beautiful city) about a month ago, out of 10 restaurants, you could not pay by card in 9 !!! so aka great power
they wrote that in the Czech Republic, not in Brno :D :D
Are there any fees for payments made in this way via ApplePay?
The fees are paid by the bank and the merchant, not you, so payment via ApplePay is free.
Well, by the way, I'm interested in that... Is it possible to withdraw from an ATM? Tried it yesterday with Google Pay, it seemed to accept the PIN but nothing happened in the end…