Apple is tightening its grip on the digital wallet with a new feature designed to eliminate one of its last gaps—unsupported passes and tickets.
According to Bloomberg, the feature will be included in the upcoming iOS 27 Wallet update. If a gym or ticketing app provides a QR code for entry that can’t currently be added to Apple Wallet, users will be able to use “Create a Pass” to import it or simply take a picture and digitize it.
Apple is piloting three templates for the platform: memberships, events, and a catch-all category for other types of passes, including gift cards. While this addition expands the already growing footprint of prepaid products, it remains to be seen whether consumers will fully embrace it.
“Apple’s plan matches the desire of consumers, with nearly half of U.S. consumers reporting in Javelin research that they would like to provision gift cards to a digital wallet,” said Jordan Hirschfield, Director of Prepaid at Javelin Strategy & Research.
“However, my concern is that beyond well-established retailer wallets, consumers won’t actually take the time to self-provision gift cards—especially considering nearly 70% of consumers will redeem their card balance within one month of receiving it,” he said.
Digitizing Benefits
Despite some uncertainty, there are clear advantages to digitizing gift cards. Beyond convenience, digital cards are less likely to be lost, stolen, or forgotten at the bottom of a drawer.
The benefits for merchants are equally compelling. Physical cards are often used once and discarded, whereas a digital gift card—especially one stored in a mobile wallet—has greater potential to evolve into a stored-value account that supports recurring purchases.
Emulating Apple’s Success
Stored-value accounts represent one of the most important evolutions of prepaid products in recent years. While they can technically be viewed as gift cards purchased for self-use, many merchants have leveraged them to bolster customer loyalty via rewards and incentives.
In many ways, the goal of stored-value accounts is to emulate a key driver of Apple’s success—creating an immersive, streamlined ecosystem that keeps customers coming back.
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