Banks and Credit Unions to Team Up Against Apple Pay Fees

A federal judge certified a class of U.S. card issuers in a long-running antitrust suit that accuses Apple of monopolizing tap-to-pay by blocking rivals from using the iPhone’s NFC chip. Filed in 2022, the complaint alleges card issuers paid Apple up to $1 billion a year in fees - 0.15 percent on credit transactions and $0.005 on debit - with plaintiffs giving the concrete example that a $1,000 Apple Pay transaction yields $1.50 to Apple from the issuer. U.S. District Judge Jeffrey White also denied Apple’s bid to exclude expert testimony that plaintiffs say demonstrates Apple’s monopoly power in the mobile wallet market.

The case argues Apple forced issuers to use Apple Pay exclusively and extract fees that would be unsustainable if iOS supported third‑party wallets as Android does, which lets multiple wallets operate and does not charge issuers for contactless payments. Plaintiffs seek repayment of fees and an injunction to end Apple’s policies. Apple has since loosened NFC access: as of iOS 18.1 developers in the U.S., Canada, Australia, Brazil, Japan, New Zealand, the U.K., the EEA and other countries may offer NFC contactless payments in their apps, a change the plaintiffs contend doesn’t undo the alleged past harm.