What you need to know
- German Sparkassen-Card users can now take advantage of contactless payments via Apple Pay.
- Banks have partnered with Girocard to make it happen.
- Credit cards were the only Apple Pay option before this move.
Now more people can use Apple Pay in Germany.
After months of credit cards being the only Apple Pay option in Germany, users can now add their Sparkassen-Card – a form of debit card – to the Wallet app on their devices. That brings Apple Pay support to the card for the first time.
Spotted by iphone-ticker, the change comes following a partnership with Girocard.
The savings banks are now also offering Apple Pay in conjunction with the Girocard. The debit card, known as the "Sparkassen-Card", can now be stored in the Apple Wallet, just like the institute's credit cards were previously. This means that savings bank customers can now also use the "most popular card in Germany" with Apple Pay.
Credit card support in Germany came about just before last Christmas but debit cards were left out in the cold. Debit card support had been touted back then, but it's taken until almost September for all the required ducks to be put into their relevant rows.