ME Bank, Heritage Bank switch on Apple Pay

Good news for ME Bank and Heritage Bank customers today, as the Australian lenders announce Apple Pay is now an available payment method

ANZ was the first of the big four banks in Australia to allow Apple Pay back in 2016, followed by CommBank and NAB last year.

Westpac customers were finally given access to Apple Pay in April this year, after Westpac subsidiaries received it at Christmastime, months earlier.

Apple pay a lifeline during COVID-19

The need for contactless payments has spiked understandably in the last few months as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Eftpos Australia data found that Australians made more than 1.8 billion electronic point-of-sale transactions in 2017-18, totalling over $115 billion. That is nearly 5 million transactions per day.

This means that there are millions of opportunities daily for the spread of COVID-19, and other germs, when physically inserting a debit or credit card into an Eftpos terminal.

Using Apple Pay to make contactless payments with an iPhone or Apple Watch is just one more way Australians can stay safe in these times.

ME Group Executive Customer Banking, Craig Ralston, said: “Customers have been asking for it, and we’re happy to be introducing it during a time when people are looking for an alternative to cash.”

Peter Lock, Heritage Bank CEO, further reiterated the importance of Apple Pay during the COVID-19 pandemic, saying: “With impacts of COVID-19 changing everyday life, it’s more important than ever we support our customers to make contactless digital payments simply and safely.”

Online payment safety a priority

Apple Pay is not just a convenient way to make in-person transactions, but a convenient payment method for online shopping.

When shopping using apps or on the web in Safari, Apple Pay conveniently stores your credit or debit card information and preloads this for you, saving you time and effort in repeatedly typing out shipping and billing information.

Further, the debit or credit card numbers are not stored on the device or Apple servers. Instead, Apple Pay gives customers a unique, and encrypted ‘Device Account Number’ when making payments, to help reduce the risk of fraud.

Bank accounts that offer Apple Pay

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