Ally Bank customers can now add their debit cards to Apple Pay

Apple Pay
Apple Pay (Image credit: iMore)

Customers of Ally Bank can now use Apple Pay with their Ally-issued debit cards. The bank joins over 1,000 other financial institutions in the United States in supporting the contactless payment system.

Apple Pay allows owners of select Apple products to pay for purchases using only their devices. For Ally customers or anyone else looking to get started with the system, be sure to check out our ultimate guide to Apple Pay.

Press release:

Ally Bank Adds Apple Pay® for iPhone® to List of Services Available to Customers Via Mobile Device

MIDVALE, Utah, March 16, 2016 -- Ally Bank, the direct banking subsidiary of Ally Financial Inc. (NYSE: ALLY), today announced it is offering customers with debit cards access to Apple Pay®, a simple and secure way to pay for goods and services with a compatible Apple mobile device.

In participating stores, Apple Pay will work with iPhone® 6, iPhone 6 Plus and Apple Watch®, upon availability. Within apps, Apple Pay is compatible with iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus, iPad Air® 2 and iPad mini™ 3. Once a customer has entered their Ally Bank debit card information on a device, they will be ready to make payments with Apple Pay at supported merchants.

"Given the growing use of mobile devices, offering Apple Pay to our customers is yet another way we are making banking convenient and simple," said Diane Morais, chief executive officer and president of Ally Bank. "But we're not stopping there: our team is currently working on supporting two other mobile pay options – Android Pay® and Samsung Pay™ – to bring mobile payments services to a broader base of Ally Bank customers."

To pay at checkout, users simply hold their mobile device near a contactless reader and authorize the payment using a passcode or Touch ID®, and a subtle vibration and beep will confirm that the payment has been processed.

In addition to being easy to use, Apple Pay provides a secure form of payment. Since the card data is encrypted and not stored on Apple servers, it is inaccessible if the mobile device is either lost or stolen. In addition, the retailer or merchant never has direct access to a consumer's card details. Android Pay and Samsung Pay support are expected to launch later this year.

Joseph Keller

Joseph Keller is the former Editor in Chief of iMore. An Apple user for almost 20 years, he spends his time learning the ins and outs of iOS and macOS, always finding ways of getting the most out of his iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch, and Mac.