After years of pressure from regulators in the European Union and other regions, Apple has finally bowed down and made an unprecedented concession in the field of near-field communication (NFC) payments, giving competitors of Apple Pay a chance to tap into the payments made by iPhone users through Tap to Pay.　

On Wednesday, August 14th, Eastern Time, Apple announced that developers will be able to use the Secure Element (SE) in the iPhone, starting from the new operating system iOS 18.1, to provide NFC touchless data exchange in iPhone applications they develop themselves, without going through Apple Pay and Apple Wallet. To use the new features inside these apps, users can open the app directly or set the app as the default support in iOS settings, and then double-tap the side button on the iPhone to initiate the transaction.

Apple said that with the new NFC and SE APIs, developers will be able to provide touchless data exchange within their apps, which can be used for closed-loop public transportation, enterprise ID cards, student ID cards, home door keys, hotel keys, merchant points and reward cards, and even event tickets, and will support ID cards in the future. These APIs will first be available to developers in Australia, Brazil, Canada, Japan, New Zealand, the United Kingdom and the United States through the iOS 18.1 developer resources to be released soon, and will be deployed in more areas in the future.

At the same time, Apple pointed out that if developers want to include the new touchless data exchange feature in their iPhone apps, they need to sign a commercial agreement with Apple, apply for and obtain NFC and SE authorization, and pay related fees. This will ensure that developers comply with specific industry and regulatory requirements and adhere to Apple's safety and privacy standards.

The above Apple announcement means that Apple will begin to allow third parties to use the payment chips in iPhones to process transactions, which is equivalent to allowing banks and other service providers to compete with the Apple Pay platform. Some media have stated that so far, many of the functions of the iPhone NFC chip that only Apple Pay and Apple Wallet could use, this "exclusive" advantage will change with the launch of iOS 18.1.

Some media also mentioned that this open NFC payment is the result of years of pressure from regulators in the European Union and other regions on Apple. Wall Street Observer noted that this year, Apple has made a series of concessions under anti-monopoly pressure from the European Union.

In January of this year, Apple announced a historic and major reform of its iOS, Safari and App Store products in the European Union. The reform will enable customers to download software from outside the Apple App Store for the first time. People will also be able to use other payment systems, and it will be easier to choose a new default web browser.

On July 11, the European Commission announced a settlement with Apple on its investigation of mobile payment anti-monopoly. Apple decided to allow third-party mobile wallets and payment services to use the technology behind the Apple Pay app, promising to open up mobile payment functions based on NFC technology to competitors for free and the relevant commitments will last for ten years and apply to the entire European Economic Area. This means that Apple will for the first time open up payments to third parties.

Last Thursday, Apple announced that to comply with the EU's Digital Markets Act, it will make significant updates to its App Store policies, allowing European developers to promote and sell products outside of Apple's ecosystem, rather than being limited to Apple's App Store. The new rules will take effect this fall.