Britain’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has proposed requiring Apple to open a second route to iPhone contactless functions, potentially widening payment competition while leaving future access charges unresolved.
The contrast with Europe is the price. In July 2024, the European Commission made Apple’s pledge of free access to host-based card emulation (HCE) legally binding for eligible rival wallet developers in the European Economic Area. The British proposal would allow Apple to charge.
Under the Oct. 20 proposal to broaden iPhone contactless access, Apple would have to offer HCE to eligible UK developers. Its existing option uses a secure element (SE), a hardware-based method. Apple’s developer guidance requires an agreement covering applicable fees for that route but publishes no price.
The CMA says businesses have raised concerns that Apple’s current fees and conditions may make competing services commercially impractical. It expects its proposed pricing principles to bring charges substantially below current levels while still paying Apple for access. The regulator has not proposed a specific price.
UK Finance recorded 19.2 billion contactless payments in 2025, representing 39% of all UK payments. That count includes physical cards as well as mobile devices. In a survey conducted May 20-24, 2026, Which? found that 62% of UK adults used a digital wallet; half of wallet users used Apple Wallet.
The CMA says a second method and lower fees could help financial technology companies offer competing payment apps, account-to-account payments and other contactless services. Apple would have to provide the additional access, though the final terms remain undecided.
Apple argued in an August 2025 submission that its existing UK approach supports wallet access and protects privacy and security. The submission preceded the current proposal. The CMA says the evidence it has reviewed points to no inherent security problem with either SE or HCE.
The proposal follows the CMA’s October 2025 designation of Apple’s mobile platform as having strategic market status, which allows the regulator to consider conduct requirements. The CMA is accepting comments until Nov. 17 and will make a final decision after reviewing them; it has not announced when.
