The Commonwealth Bank of Australia, Westpac, National Australia Bank and Bendigo and Adelaide Bank — have applied to the ACCC (Competition and Consumer Commission) to negotiate with Apple Pay in Australia.
They accuse Apple of trying to take advantage on their investment in Australia’s contactless payment infrastructure, claiming that Apple is seeking for exclusive use of Australia’s existing NFC terminal infrastructure. The banks fear being sidelined as mobile wallets gain in popularity, with Apple having approximately 40% of the smartphone market in Australia.
Apple claims that opening up access to the NFC function would not undermine the security of mobile wallets is dismissed by pointing Apple’s experience in China and Japan, where they were forced to modify demands to maintain parity with Samsung Pay.
The banks also want price transparency on transaction costs. Apple Pay derives its income from a part of Merchant Service Fee (MSF) that merchants pay to the card issuers. In its deal with Apple Pay, ANZ has given up some of its interchange fees to Apple, but the actual amount has not been disclosed. The banks pointed out if Apple gained a dominant share of mobile wallet transactions in Australia, then consumers wouldn’t be aware of the costs that are associated with this method of payment. This would conflict with the RBA’s objective of improving signalling to consumers the price of each payment option.
References: http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-10-20/australia-apple-pay-dispute/7946998