The final of the “big four” banks in Australia has officially enabled Apple Pay support today. As reported by ZDNet, Westpac customers can now add their eligible credit or debit card to Apple Pay.

Westpac’s Apple Pay support extends to all Mastercard debit and credit cards, as well as Eftpos Handycard. Westpac executives say that Apple Pay comes at a crucial time for customers, as they are looking for an alternative to cash amid the coronavirus pandemic.

“We are pleased to announce that Westpac customers can now use Apple Pay to make fast and secure payments. This comes at an important time for our customers, who are looking for an alternative to cash,” Westpac Group chief executive of consumer David Lindberg said.

Lindberg added that Westpac has already seen a n increase in customers using digital banking due to COVID-19, and Apple Pay adoption will only further increase that: “We have seen a significant increase in customers using digital banking in recent weeks as more Australians stay at home. With the introduction of Apple Pay, it will now be even easier for customers to pay for goods and services in stores, via apps or online without the need for a card or wallet.”

Westpac originally announced their plans to eventually adopt Apple Pay back in December, with a target date of June 2020 — but COVID-19 has clearly expedited that rollout. To add your Westpac card to Apple Pay, open the Wallet app and tap the plus button in the upper-right corner. The app will then walk you through the process of adding your card to your iPhone and Apple Watch.

Westpac is the final of the “big four banks” in Australia to add support for Apple Pay. The big banks in Australia had sparred with Apple over access to the iPhone’s NFC hardware, but have since given in and adopted Apple’s mobile payment platform. ANZ was the first of the big four banks in Australia to adopt Apple Pay, followed by CommBank and NAB last year.

Source: 9to5mac