Global Apple Pay arrives with iOS 11 Apple Pay NFC switching and iPhone 8

In addition to the J/Speedy and Mastercard Contactless announcement from T-Cubic, other Apple Pay benefits for Japanese users were announced by American Express. With iOS 11 Apple Pay AMEX users can now use Apple Pay Japan abroad.

7-Eleven also announced support for J/Speedy cards from JCB. Translation: 7-Eleven is rolling out support for NFC Pay with the new POS system installation starting next month. A lot of Japanese users think VISA will announce official Apple Pay Japan support soon now that NFC Pay is in place.

Apple Pay uses two device account numbers with Japanese credit cards. This allows a single card to use both FeliCa or EMV

Apple Pay uses a single device account number for credit cards outside Japan

Apple’s support of global NFC (A-B-F) in iPhone 8, iPhone X and Apple Watch Series 3  with the NFC switching improvements in iOS 11 is a game changer. It makes Apple Pay truly global and removes the FeliCa barrier. Inbound visitors can use Apple Pay Suica, Japanese going abroad can use Apple Pay.

It’s unfortunate that people outside of Japan cannot fully appreciate the fascinating changes Apple is bringing to the contactless payments market with iPhone 8 and iOS 11 Apple Pay.