South African fintech company Yoco has partnered with Apple to introduce Tap to Pay on iPhone in South Africa, marking another major step in the country’s growing shift toward cashless payments.
The new feature allows businesses to accept contactless payments directly on an iPhone without requiring a separate card machine or payment terminal. Customers can simply tap their contactless debit or credit cards, iPhones, Apple Watches, or other digital wallets on a merchant’s iPhone to complete transactions securely.
With the rollout, Yoco becomes one of the first payment platforms in South Africa to support Apple’s Tap to Pay technology, giving small businesses and merchants easier access to digital payment tools. The feature is expected to particularly benefit mobile vendors, small retailers, freelancers, and entrepreneurs looking for more flexible payment solutions without investing heavily in additional hardware.
Founded in 2015, Yoco has grown into one of South Africa’s leading fintech companies by focusing on payment solutions for small and medium-sized businesses. The company says it currently serves more than 200,000 merchants across the country and processes billions of rand in transactions annually.
The partnership also reflects a broader trend within Africa’s fintech ecosystem, where companies are increasingly prioritizing mobile-first payment systems and simpler merchant tools as digital commerce adoption continues to rise across the continent.
According to Yoco, the collaboration with Apple is aimed at lowering barriers for business owners and making payment acceptance more accessible. By turning iPhones into payment terminals, merchants can process transactions from virtually anywhere, helping improve convenience for both sellers and customers.
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Apple noted that security and privacy remain central to the Tap to Pay system. The company said payment information is encrypted and processed using the iPhone’s Secure Element technology, while card numbers and transaction data are not stored on Apple servers.
The launch adds South Africa to the growing list of countries where Apple’s Tap to Pay service is available, as the tech giant continues expanding its financial technology offerings globally. For Yoco, the partnership further strengthens its position in South Africa’s competitive digital payments market and highlights increasing collaboration between African fintech firms and global technology companies.
