Apple enabled Tap to Pay for iPhones in Mexico this week, a move that gives merchants a new way to accept contactless payments and boosts Mexico’s efforts to digitalize its largely cash-based economy.
This feature, which has been available in the United States since 2022, will now allow businesses in Mexico to use an iPhone to accept contactless payments by card or digital wallet.
Mexico is the third Latin American country to benefit from the feature, which is already operational in Chile and Brazil.
The move represents an expansion of digital payment options in Mexico, which currently include systems like Clip’s Tap to Pay on Android (launched in January), Mercado Pago’s PointTap and various banking apps.
Apple said that Adyen, Clip, Mercado Pago and Visa Acceptance Platform will be the first platforms in the country to offer Tap to Pay on the iPhone, “so that businesses of all sizes and sectors, from transportation and retail to food, beverage, beauty and professional services, can offer the Tap to Pay option on the iPhone as a method to complete a purchase.”
According to Apple, any model from the iPhone XS onwards with the latest version of iOS can receive payments using Tap to Pay.
Digital payment company Clip said that by not requiring additional hardware, Tap to Pay will allow millions of businesses that operate with tight schedules to collect payments instantly.
“By enabling Tap to Pay on iPhone in the Clip app, we reinforce our commitment to the democratization of digital payments and financial inclusion,” Clip CEO and founder Adolfo Babatz said. “This allows us to make technological solutions available to all businesses in Mexico, significantly contributing to the country’s economic development, aligned with our mission to make ideas happen.”
Tap to Pay complements President Claudia Sheinbaum’s initiative to shift towards a less cash-oriented economy, as she recently announced that cash payments at gas stations and highway toll booths will be eliminated starting this year.
Mexico News Daily
