Samsung Pay entered the US market back in September, but it appears the South Korean giant is already giving Apple and Google a run for the money in this field. According to a recent report by Bloomberg, Samsung Pay gained over 5 million users since September 2015, processing transactions accounting for a total value of over $500 million.
Right now, Samsung's mobile wallet is only available in the US and its home market of South Korea. On the other hand, it is scheduled to go live later this year in Australia, Canada, Brazil, Spain, Singapore, and the United Kingdom. Apple Pay has been around for 17 months and is available in much more than just two markets, but only attracted 12 million users that use its services at least once a month.
Unlike Apple Pay, Samsung Pay does not need merchants to have NFC terminals in place. Their payment system emulates the magnetic strip of a regular credit card, processing the payments the same way as when swiping a card. Android Pay has 5 million monthly users as well, but while about 4 percent of Samsung Pay-capable devices use this service, Google's payment system is being used by about 1 percent of the compatible devices out there.