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Apple Unlocks NFC Payments for Third-Party Apps, Enabling USDC Tap to Pay on iPhones
This announcement came after a statement released by Apple earlier. The tech giant company stated that it is expanding its NFC capabilities in iOS 18.1, which would allow developers to offer NFC contactless transactions using secure elements within apps on iPhones beyond just Apple Pay and Wallet. This includes transactions for in-store purchases, digital keys, IDs, and more.
Apple revealed in the announcement that these new APIs will be available in Australia, Brazil, Canada, Japan, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, and the United States, but did not mention the other European countries. However, it was stated that other locations will follow.
USDC Tap to Pay Enabled on iPhone through Circle Integration
Explaining the integration of Circle on iPhone, Jeremy stated that this development has nothing to do with Apple or Apple Pay, as his company has no relationship with the tech giant.
He then revealed that the new functionality will allow users to make payments by just tapping their phones using the USDC stablecoin. He noted that before this update, only Apple’s own Wallet app and Apple Pay had access to the iPhone’s NFC technology for payments.
Jeremy added that the new functionality will allow point-of-sale systems to specify to an iPhone the blockchain address and payment amount, allowing the user to confirm payment and initiate a blockchain-based USDC transaction to settle the purchase. He said:
“This would allow a PoS to tell an iPhone what blockchain address it will accept USDC on, or the amount to pay, and then the iPhone-based wallet app could prompt the user to confirm a payment (like with FaceID) and initiate a transaction over the blockchain to settle the USDC.”
Allaire also said that Apple’s choice to give access to the iPhone’s NFC goes beyond just USDC. It will enable many things outside stablecoins, like using NFTs for tickets and other certificates, as well as allowing other stablecoins like EURC to be used.
He then encouraged wallet developers to start making use of Apple’s latest features to work on integration and get their apps ready for USDC Tap to Pay. He noted:
“FWIW, this applies to lots of things outside of USDC — NFTs for tickets, other certificates, other stablecoins like EURC, etc So, yes, Wallet developers should start using the latest Apple iOS SDKs that support this and ready their apps for USDC Tap to Pay.”
While Circle is working on its Tap to Pay on iPhone, MetaMask, another crypto payment firm, has joined forces with Mastercard and Baanx to launch a self-custody debit card pilot in the UK and the EU. This test will let certain users directly pay for regular purchases from their crypto wallets, further connecting digital currencies with traditional payment methods.
Apple Unlocks NFC Payments for Third-Party Apps, Enabling USDC Tap to Pay on iPhones
