Apple Pay Now More Widely Accepted Than PayPal

The latest data from Boston Retail Partners suggest Apple Inc. AAPL is now the top dog in the digital payments business. According to the study, 36 percent of North American retailers already accept Apple Pay as a payment option, more than any other digital payment system.

Apple launched Apple Pay back in October 2014, and the service has flown mostly under the radar as investors focus on iPhone sales. However, chief financial officer Luca Maestri has said Apple Pay now accounts for 90 percent of global near field communication payments.

Apple continues its global rollout of Apple Pay, which is expected to launch in Denmark, Finland, Sweden and the United Arab Emirates within the next several days. Apple Pay will now be available in only 20 countries, leaving the service plenty of room to grow.

Apple Pay and Paypal Holdings Inc PYPL are the two clear leaders in the digital payment space. Roughly a third of North American retailers already accept PayPal. Within the next year, more than half of all North American retailers plan to accept Paypal. Apple Pay’s acceptance rate is expected to approach 60 percent.

Android Pay by Alphabet Inc GOOG GOOGL is expected to eclipse the 50-percent acceptance rate within one to three years.

Masterpress by Mastercard Inc MA Visa Checkout by Visa Inc V and Samsung Pay by SAMSUNG ELECTRINIC KRW5000 SSNLF are also among the mobile payment marketshare leaders.

Apple Pay may soon be far more important to Apple investors as the company transitions away from hardware sales and toward a services subscription model.

KeyBanc analyst Andy Hargreaves recently said he is “pessimistic around multicycle [iPhone] unit growth.”

Related Link: They Grow Up So Fast: PayPal Now Outperforming eBay