What is Apple Pay and What Are its Advantages?

For those of you who are unfamiliar with it; Apple Pay is a digital wallet similar to PayPal that is only available to iPhone users. The wallet takes the form of an app that can access a user’s bank account or credit card balance.

To pay; all a user has to do is touch the app this causes the iPhone to transfer money or credit directly to the retailer. There are some advantages to this for merchants including:

• Faster checkout time at the register. No swiping or customer searching for credit cards. This could speed up checkout times and encourage repeat business; because slow moving lines at the cash register are a major customer complaint.

• The customer can access all of his or her credit card and bank accounts from one place making it easier and faster to pay.

• Less work at checkout and in the back office. The money is transferred directly to the bank, which handles the paperwork.

• Theoretically payment will be faster and the merchant will get her or his money sooner.

A major drawback will be the expense of buying and installing a new cash register that is equipped to take Apple Pay. Most such devices sold in the United States will also take Android Pay and Samsung Pay.