It's official – Apple Pay, Apple's mobile payment service, is planning to launch in China. According to reports by the Wall Street Journal, Apple has already made deals with four major Chinese banks. China is set to join the super-exclusive club of countries with Apple Pay services, including the US, UK, Australia and Canada.
Don't give up on WeChat Wallet or cast away your cash just yet, though. The Apple payment service won't be around until February 2016, according to reports.
And it looks like Apple Pay will be facing some major competition when it finally launches. According to the Wall Street Journal, Alipay constituted 45 percent of total online payment transactions this year.
But we're not too worried about Apple. Everything the tech giant touches in China turns into gold. Just look at its revenue in China so far this year: 12.5 billion USD, compared to the six billion USD in Europe. And with over two billion mobile transactions being made in China during the second quarter of 2015 alone, we're sure Apple will be able to squeeze its way into the mobile payment market without too many problems.
So get your iPhones ready and kiss those beloved jiao coins goodbye (or don't, you have no idea where they've been) – Apple Pay is on its way.