Apple Pay to officially launch in China on Feb. 18

Apple’s mobile payment system, Apple Pay, is to finally launch in one of its most important and growing markets this week: The Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC) has announced it will be available in the country on Feb. 18.

The announcement was made by ICBC via social media earlier this week and the launch is inline with Apple’s earlier indication that Pay would launch in China early in 2016. China will become the fifth country to receive Apple Pay behind the US, United Kingdom, Canada, and Australia.

Though China is Apple’s second biggest market based on revenue, Reuters, which picked up the story, notes that it won’t be an easy market to crack from the perspective of mobile payment systems – there are already established companies in the market operating mobile payment systems, which include WeChat Payment and Alipay.

The article also notes the wider difficulties Apple Pay has faced; in the UK, many larger banks initially resisted the system over fees, while in Australia, the four main banks continue to hold out on the payment system.