This is old news yet beside the early notice on October 14(
WAON's PR on AEON's (parent organization) PR in Japanese only: https://www.aeon.info/news/release_33536/
nanaco PR (you may need to use VPN (e.g. Opera Browser) if you receive a "Bad Request" like I did or similar) in Japanese only: https://www.nanaco-net.jp/material/pdf/release/pdf/2021/20211021.pdf
In iOS 15, the cards are in its own dedicated e-Money section. Also, those cards don't support Express Transit ( ). Furthermore, WAON supports Family Sharing on offline SV (Stored Value; offline SV Family Sharing: ). Unfortunately, the e-Money cards don't support Visa for recharging/reloading/top-ups.
Apple Support article on e-Money cards: support.apple.com/ht212796
Tweet regarding Visa in-app payment support for e-Money cards:
The contrast in design between the original e-Money Android apps for Japan-only Osaifu Keitai compliant phones and the recently released e-Money iOS apps for Apple Pay are huge!
App comparison in referenced tweet via this tweet:
Unfortunately, the WAON app is only available in the Japanese App store only.
Source:
Same applies to the nanaco app.
For nanaco, it is also possible to migrate existing mobile card from Android to iOS via the nanaco apps.
Official nanaco mobile card migration support page (use VPN if you receive "Bad Request" or equivalent) in Japanese only: https://www.nanaco-net.jp/app/procedure/change/android.html
YouTube demo in Japanese only:
Thoughts on the launch of the e-Money cards in Apple Pay? IMO this is great news for Apple Watch and iPhone tourists and locals alike especially where WAON is accepted at places where Suica and PASMO are not:
), there's no follow-up on launch day but I'll spill it here (unless I missed the follow-up). WAON and nanaco have launched Apple Pay support on October 21 10 AM JST (according to the referenced tweet posted in this tweet: ).
Two popular Japanese prepaid money cards will be gaining support for Apple Pay later this year, allowing the cards to be added to the Wallet app for contactless payments using an iPhone or Apple Watch where accepted, it was announced today.
The cards set to gain Apple Pay support include Seven & I's Nanaco card and AEON's WAON card, as noted by Ata Distance. The blog, which focuses on mobile payment and transit cards in Japan, believes it will likely become possible to add the cards to the Wallet app shortly after the public release of iOS 15, which is expected in September.
As part of its Apple Pay announcement, Seven & I said it has issued around 74 million Nanaco cards that are accepted at around 800,000 retail locations in Japan, including 7-Eleven and Ito-Yokado stores. Likewise, AEON said it has issued over 87 million WAON cards that are accepted at more than 840,000 retail locations across the island country.
Apple Pay continues to expand to more issuers around the world, including ING in Belgium and FNB in South Africa earlier this month.
Article Link: Japanese Prepaid Cards Nanaco and WAON to Support Apple Pay Later This Year
WAON's PR on AEON's (parent organization) PR in Japanese only: https://www.aeon.info/news/release_33536/
nanaco PR (you may need to use VPN (e.g. Opera Browser) if you receive a "Bad Request" like I did or similar) in Japanese only: https://www.nanaco-net.jp/material/pdf/release/pdf/2021/20211021.pdf
In iOS 15, the cards are in its own dedicated e-Money section. Also, those cards don't support Express Transit ( ). Furthermore, WAON supports Family Sharing on offline SV (Stored Value; offline SV Family Sharing: ). Unfortunately, the e-Money cards don't support Visa for recharging/reloading/top-ups.
Apple Support article on e-Money cards: support.apple.com/ht212796
Tweet regarding Visa in-app payment support for e-Money cards:
The contrast in design between the original e-Money Android apps for Japan-only Osaifu Keitai compliant phones and the recently released e-Money iOS apps for Apple Pay are huge!
App comparison in referenced tweet via this tweet:
Unfortunately, the WAON app is only available in the Japanese App store only.
Source:
Same applies to the nanaco app.
For nanaco, it is also possible to migrate existing mobile card from Android to iOS via the nanaco apps.
Official nanaco mobile card migration support page (use VPN if you receive "Bad Request" or equivalent) in Japanese only: https://www.nanaco-net.jp/app/procedure/change/android.html
YouTube demo in Japanese only:
Thoughts on the launch of the e-Money cards in Apple Pay? IMO this is great news for Apple Watch and iPhone tourists and locals alike especially where WAON is accepted at places where Suica and PASMO are not:
Though the e-Money cards would be more beneficial on Apple Watch since Express Transit and Power Reserve aren't supported.