Apple Pay support comes to LINE Pay in Japan

Smartphone wallet service LINE Pay has added Apple Pay support in Japan.

In a press release the company stated:

LINE Pay Co., Ltd. (Headquarters: Shinagawa-ku, Tokyo, CEO: Hisahiro Nagafuku, hereafter: our company) is using the mobile money transfer and payment service "LINE Pay" developed on the communication app "LINE". We are pleased to inform you that we will start supporting "Apple Pay" from today.

Users can quickly and easily set up "Apple Pay" from the "LINE" app, and "iPhone" and "Apple Watch" can be used on "iD" terminals installed in more than 1.21 million stores in Japan (as of September 2020). You can pay with the same "LINE Pay" balance as QR code payment just by double-clicking and holding it over.

LINE says uses will be able to use both their iPhone and Apple Watch to pay for items with their pre-charged LINE Pay balance. Apple Pay can be set up on the LINE app in the LINE Pay section and used just like regular Apple Pay with Touch ID or Face ID.

LINE says the move will open up Apple Pay payments to some 1.2 million vendors in the country.

Customers will be issued with a virtual Visa LINE Pay prepaid card when they sign up for Apple Pay, which can also be used online for shopping. customers will need a LINE Pay account to get a prepaid card issued.

Apple Pay continues to grow in popularity, especially given the emphasis on contactless payments spurred by the pandemic in 2020. Recently cryptocurrency app Lumi added Apple Pay support, allowing users to buy Bitcoin and more using Apple Pay.