Android Pay going live in the UK in the “next few months”

Writing in a new blog post today, Google has announced that it will be extending its Android Pay mobile payment platform to the UK “in the next few months”. Although the service unfortunately isn’t going live in the country just yet, Google has revealed a number of partners that it will be working with in the country.

For a start, Google has stated that it has deals with Visa and Mastercard so that the service will work with all of their cards. Eight UK banks are also currently signed up with the service, including the Bank of Scotland, First Direct, Halifax, HSBC, Lloyds Bank, M&S Bank, MBNA, and Nationwide Building Society. This is notably missing American Express, Barclays, and Santander from the list, but Google states that new banks are being added all the time.

Google reiterates that customers will be able to use Android Pay everywhere that contactless payments are accepted, including on the London Underground. Remember, Android Pay works on devices running Android 4.4 KitKat or higher that have a near field communication (NFC) chip on board.

Currently, Android Pay is only available in the US and Google proudly states that its platform has seen 1.5 million new registrations each month since its launch in September. However, rival platforms from Apple and Samsung are believed to be ahead of Google’s mobile payment system, having already seen roll outs in other countries. Apple Pay is already live in the UK, with Samsung Pay expected to arrive soon as well. After the UK launch, Android Pay is expected to land in Australia by the end of June.