NFC Times Exclusive Insight - Samsung launched Samsung Pay in its fifth country, Australia, on Wednesday, but like Apple, Samsung has had to make do without the country's largest card issuers to begin with.
Samsung Pay launched with American Express and Citibank as Samsung works to bring on one or more of Australia’s big four banks. Apple launched Apple Pay in Australia seven months ago with American Express before more recently signing up ANZ, one of the smallest of the big four.
Samsung Pay's Australian deployment comes just a couple of weeks ahead of the delayed launch of Android Pay in the country, which will likely happen June 30, a source familiar with the project told NFC Times.