Apple today announced that Tap to Pay on iPhone is now available in South Africa, allowing merchants to accept contactless payments using only their iPhone and partner-provided iOS app.
The feature allows businesses of any size to accept contactless credit and debit cards, Apple Pay, and other digital wallets at checkout. Merchants tell customers to hold their card, iPhone, Apple Watch, or other digital wallet near the merchant’s device, and the payment is completed via NFC technology. No additional hardware or payment terminal is required.
iStore Pay and Yoco are the first payment platforms in South Africa to support this feature. The launch supports Mastercard and Visa, with American Express support coming soon.
Tap to pay on the iPhone was first introduced in the United States in February 2022 and has been steadily growing ever since. A big wave of releases in 2025 brought the feature to many new markets, including 18 new countries in May, five more European countries in September, and launched in Singapore and Hong Kong in December. Malaysia followed in April 2026, and Apple confirmed earlier this year that the feature has reached 50 markets around the world.
As with all Tap to Pay payments on the iPhone, privacy is built in. Transactions are encrypted and processed through the device’s Secure Element, and Apple says it has no knowledge of what has been purchased or who is purchasing it. Card numbers and transaction data are not stored on the phone or on Apple’s servers.
Tap to pay on iPhone requires an iPhone XS or later running the latest version of iOS.
Good News
Apple launches Tap to Pay on iPhone in Malaysia
Apple has announced the availability of Tap to Pay on the iPhone in Malaysia, allowing independent retailers, small retailers, and large retailers in the region to use iPhones as a point of payment. Tap to Pay allows iPhones to accept payments with Apple Pay, contactless credit and debit cards, and other digital wallets. All transactions are encrypted, and Apple has no knowledge…
Reddit Starts Blocking Mobile Website, Pushing Users to App Instead
Social media site Reddit recently started blocking mobile visitors to its website while pushing them to download the official Reddit app, and it’s fair to say that the move isn’t going down well with users. If you visit reddit.com on your iPhone today, you may see a new popup that can’t be uninstalled, asking you to “get an app to keep using Reddit.” A Reddit spokesperson told Ars Technica…
11 reasons to wait for the iPhone 18 Pro
We’re only four months away from Apple’s next-generation smartphone lineup, and while we’re not expecting a sea change in terms of performance, there are still a few rumored upgrades coming to the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max. One thing to note is that Apple is reportedly planning a big change in its iPhone release cycle this year, adopting …