RBA Reviews Mobile Wallets as Apple Pay, Google Pay Dominate 45% of Card Payments
Apple Pay, Google Pay, and Samsung Pay collectively handled around 45% of all card payments in Australia by the end of 2025. This shift from physical cards to digital wallets has caught the attention of the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA), which is reviewing the payments system regulation to assess the impact on competition and access.
The RBA's Review of Payments System Regulation, launched on 25 June 2026, covers various aspects, including merchant choice, account-to-account payments, mobile wallets, and cryptography. The review's regulatory priorities are expected to be published by the end of 2026, with further consultation by mid-2027. A key milestone is the Summary of Submissions due on 6 October 2026.
One major concern is the access to near-field communication (NFC) technology in smartphones, which is essential for contactless payments. The RBA noted that not all operating systems provide fee-free direct access to NFC on terms equivalent to native mobile wallets. This raises questions about competition among wallet providers, as Apple Pay, Google Pay, and Samsung Pay dominate nearly half of all card payments.
The rise of mobile wallets coincides with significant changes in card payments, including the removal of surcharges and lower interchange caps effective from 1 October 2026. The RBA is also examining the growth of buy now, pay later (BNPL) services and the potential for account-to-account payments to enhance competition with card payments.