British fintech TransferWise will now let U.S. users send money transfers via Apple Pay.
International money transmitting startup TransferWise updated its iOS app for iPhone and iPad users yesterday, adding the capability for users to send international transfers using Apple’s namesake mobile wallet service Apple Pay.
The update will allow users to send transfers of U.S. dollars through Apple Pay, a continuation of the support those users transferring British pounds already enjoy.
The fintech will roll out integration with Apple Pay for iOS users to other markets throughout the year according to Reuters, including Australia, France, Spain, Ireland, and Italy.
For Apple users, this opens the door to send U.S. dollars to international recipients at the faster speed and lower transfer rate TransferWise promises, as opposed to relying on the high fees of more traditional services.
While opening that door will doubtless be beneficial for the British fintech, TransferWise is exploring similar arrangements with other mobile payment wallets in other countries where Apple Pay may not be quite as popular.
The company currently allows transfers of Chinese yuan through via Union Pay in China, for example, and an integration with popular text service WeChat is coming soon.
While Apple Pay has been available in China for nearly two years at this point, muscling in between Chinese mobile payment giants AliPay and WeChat Pay, which make up 90% of that country’s mobile payment market, is not proving easy for the technology company.
TransferWise, a tech unicorn at its current valuation of $1.1 billion according to the Techcrunch Unicorn Leaderboard, has been expanding globally with these kinds of integrations as well as through partnerships with banks, both traditional and otherwise.
The service is currently integrated with several region banks, as well as neobanks such as German challenger bank N26.
Both Apple and TransferWise had not replied to requests for comment at press time.