Brief:

• Apple Pay, the mobile payment service that the iPhone maker introduced in 2014, plans to add a feature that will let people send cash payments to each other and make debit purchases with their smartphones. Apple Pay Cash is coming this month for U.S. customers with next update to iOS 11, Apple’s mobile operating system, 9to5Mac reported.
• Jennifer Bailey, vice president of Apple Pay, last weekend demonstrated the platform’s new features in a keynote presentation at the Money20/20 conference in Las Vegas. She also said Apple Pay is available in 20 markets globally that account for 70% of the world’s card payment volume. Other news includes Chipotle and McDonald's adding Apple Pay to order-ahead services in selection locations and payments the service rolling out to all Saks Fifth Avenue, Albertsons and Dick's Sporting Goods stores in the U.S.
• Separately, Chase yesterday introduced Finn by Chase, an all-mobile bank aimed at millennials who are more comfortable using smartphones for transactions, per a statement. Finn has tools to help people assign ratings to purchases, automatically build savings and limit spending.

Insight:

Mobile payment systems and e-wallets are popular in countries like China that don’t have pervasive credit and debit card usage, but the technology hasn’t gained much traction in the U.S. with customers generally feeling little incentive to change their checkout methods. Concerns about privacy are also prevalent, especially with headlines about major data breaches that expose the personal data of millions of customers.

Still, tech companies push forward with developing mobile payment platforms. Apple's news around how merchants are embracing the service is good news as it means mobile payments will be more convenient for those consumers who have embraced them. Peer-to-peer payments for Apple Pay are highly anticipated because the move could introduce Apple Pay to a number of new users and for its potential to impact Venmo, a pioneer in the mobile peer-to-peer payments space. 

It has been a big week for mobile payments, with Google this week unveiling its “pay with Google” service that aims to make transactions easier for retailers and consumers. Amazon expanded its Amazon Pay in-store program to restaurants with Clover point-of-sale stations located in the northeastern U.S. and Seattle area. Apple Pay works with 4,000 card issuers and is accepted by 50% of U.S. retailers, Apple’s Bailey told her audience.

Retailer adoption of mobile technology is expected to transform payments and other aspects of the in-store experience for consumers, according to a study this month by Juniper Research. Its report says smart-store technologies will lead to more than $78 billion in yearly transaction revenue in the next five years. These technologies, including Amazon Go and "invisible payment" tech, are ideal for online-first retailers, as they can drive a more personalized customer experience, according to the study.