{
  "id": 15757154,
  "title": "Follow the money: Who benefits from the UK’s Apple Pay crackdown?",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/20/follow-the-money-who-benefits-from-the-uks-apple-pay-crackdown",
  "topic": "tech",
  "section": "Tech",
  "published": "2026-10-20T10:14:00.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Computerworld",
    "slug": "computerworld",
    "url": "https://www.computerworld.com/article/4237750/follow-the-money-who-benefits-from-the-uks-apple-pay-crackdown.html"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "The UK's Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) is proposing to force Apple to open access to its 12-year-old contactless payment system, NFC, to competitors under new regulations. This move aims to encourage innovation, choice, and economic growth in the UK's fintech sector. Contactless payments in the UK represent 39% of all payments, and 30% of UK adults use Apple Pay. The CMA believes that removing barriers to entry will create conditions for businesses to develop new payment apps, digital IDs, travel passes, and digital keys. While some consumers may benefit from this open NFC, it is likely that banks and fintech businesses will gain the most from this regulation. These entities have complained about Apple's 0.15% fee on credit card transactions carried out via Apple Pay, and this new rule will likely enable them to cut Apple out of revenue generated by these payments. Apple, however, argues that the CMA should not require it to adopt lower privacy and security protections, as it values customer privacy and security. The CMA maintains that Apple should receive a fair reward for providing access via its platforms and ecosystem, but the ultimate beneficiaries of this change in regulations remain unclear.",
  "summary": "The UK wants to take a chunk out of Apple Pay, as the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) moves to force Apple to open access to its 12-year-old contactless payment system to rivals. The regulator has published a consultation document that proposes requiring Apple to allow competitors to use the near-field communication (NFC) chip on its devices to enable alternative payment systems on iOS on…",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}