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Apple is bringing Apple Pay to China

apple pay apple watch
Apple Pay works on the iPhone and Apple Watch. Apple

Apple is bringing Apple Pay, its mobile payment and digital wallet service, to China, according to reports from CNBC and The Wall Street Journal.

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Apple Pay uses an iPhone or Apple Watch to wirelessly pay for items using a credit or debit card. The service is currently available in the US, UK, Australia, and Canada.

With a population of 1.37 billion, China is an increasingly important market for Apple, and the iPhone has been making massive gains in smartphone market share in the country following an aggressive expansion and retail push.

The country brought in $12.5 billion (£8.2 billion) in revenue in Q4 2015, up from $6 billion (£4 billion) in the same period last year. For comparison, Europe contributed $10 billion (£6.6 billion) during the same period.

The WSJ reports that Apple has struck deals with the four major state-run Chinese banks, which includes the Bank of China, the China Construction Bank of China, the Agricultural Bank of China, and the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China.

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Apple has been gearing up for the Chinese launch of Apple Pay for some time, according to Quartz, as the company will likely experience some regulatory hurdles. Apple has created a subsidiary company in Shanghai as part of the push.

The launch is reportedly slated for early 2016. Business Insider has reached out to Apple for comment, and will update this story when it responds.

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