GMO Financial Gate (GMO-FG), Sumitomo Mitsui Card Company (SMCC), SMBC GMO PAYMENT (SGP), and Malaysian fintech company Soft Space have announced the launch of Tap to Pay on iPhone for the “stera tap” service.
This new feature allows merchants in Japan to handle contactless payments using just an iPhone, without the need for additional hardware or payment terminals.
Starting 16 May 2024, this service enables seamless, secure in-person contactless payments for Japanese merchants.
The iPhone-based solution accepts contactless credit and debit cards, Apple Pay, and other digital wallets through the stera tap iOS app.
Payments are completed securely via NFC technology, ensuring that business and customer data remain private and secure. Notably, Apple does not store card numbers or transaction information on the device or servers.
Contactless payments are on the rise in Japan, with an acceptance rate of around 60% among small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).
However, the cost and complexity of installing payment terminals have been barriers for many SMEs.
The Tap to Pay on iPhone service with the stera tap app addresses these challenges, allowing merchants to use their iPhones as payment terminals with a simple application and setup process.
Merchants can start accepting contactless payments by downloading the stera tap iOS app and signing up with SGP.
SMCC and SGP offer the stera tap service at a competitive rate of 2.70%, with a cash-back campaign running until 30 November 2024, reducing Visa and Mastercard payment fees to 1.98% after cashback.
Merchants can begin accepting payments within 15 minutes of completing their application on the app.
This service requires an iPhone XS or later with the latest version of iOS. The stera tap iOS application is provided by GMO-FG.
