Canada’s banks form consortium to deal with Apple Pay: report

DAVID BERMAN - BANKING REPORTER

The Globe and Mail

Published Friday, Apr. 17 2015, 11:55 AM EDT

Last updated Friday, Apr. 17 2015, 12:01 PM EDT

Canada’s Big Six banks are forming a consortium to deal with issues related to an upcoming launch of Apple Pay in November, according to a report in the Wall Street Journal.

Apple Pay allows consumers to use their credit cards and debit cards to make transactions on their iPhones and Apple watches, giving Apple Inc. a potentially lucrative source of revenue at the expense of traditional banks.

Indeed, this form of payment is now considered a key source of technological disruption for traditional banks.

In remarks following Toronto-Dominion Bank’s annual general meeting earlier this month, TD’s chief executive Bharat Masrani pointedly avoided using Apple’s name in discussions with journalists.

However, Royal Bank of Canada’s chief executive, Dave McKay, told a New York audience recently that disruption was a source of concern for the bank.

“The last thing anybody wants is to have someone between you and your customer, and that’s what we now have in the payments space,” he said.

“We are on a collision course with the Googles and the Apples of the world,” he said. “Would you ever pick a fight with those types of companies? No, but we are on that course.”

More to come

Friday, April 17, 2015