Apple Finally Drags Discover Into The Waiting Arms Of Apple Pay

The last holdout among the four major U.S. credit card issuers has finally caved to Apple. Discover announced today that it will allow its cardmembers to make wireless payments using Apple Pay on their iPhone 6, iPhone 6 Plus, and Apple Watch starting this fall. Visa, MasterCard, and American Express have supported Apple Pay since it launched in October 2014, so it’s nice to see Discover finally getting onboard, even if it’s going to be a year late.

“As the mobile payments landscape matures, Discover remains committed to giving cardmembers secure options for using their cards and mobile devices,” said Discover President of Payment Services Diane Offereins. “Discover’s focus on simplicity and value for our cardmembers aligns well with the way Apple Pay makes purchases easy and convenient.”

Despite handing over some control to Apple, Discover will still allow its cardmembers to receive all of their existing benefits like Cashback Bonus and the Freeze It tool that allows you halt purchases, balance transfers, and cash advances if you “temporarily misplace” your credit card.

The news of the Discover card addition comes it was reported earlier this month that Apple Pay will make its first trek across the borders of the U.S. to neighboring Canada. The Wall Street Journal’s sources have indicated that Apple is in talks with six largest banks in Canada which include the Royal Bank of Canada, Toronto-Dominion Bank, Bank of Nova Scotia, Bank of Montreal, Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce, and National Bank of Canada.

According to the WSJ, the top six banks account for a whopping 90 percent of retail bank accounts within Canada.