Apple has announced that it is now accepting UnionPay as a payment option for App Store customers in China. Established in 2002, UnionPay is the most popular payment card company in China with over 4.5 billion cards issued. With today’s announcement, users can simply link their UnionPay debit or credit card for easy purchases.
App Store customers in China can now link their UnionPay debit or credit cards to their Apple IDs for purchases, Apple announced today. This is significant for Apple and Chinese consumers because China UnionPay, a bankcard network approved by China’s State Council and the People’s Bank of China, enjoys a virtual monopoly. It has issued more than 4.5 billion cards in China, and is available in all cities, as well as in overseas market. China (which has an estimated 100 million iPhone users) is Apple’s most important growth market; in its recent fourth-quarter earnings report, the company reported that the market generated $29.8 billion, or 16 percent, in net sales in 2014.
