ANZ has become the country’s first bank to support Apple’s mobile payment service.

Apple Pay, Apple’s digital wallet service, has made its way to Australia, with ANZ bank being the first in the country to support the mobile payments solution. According to Reuters, Apple Pay in Australia will be extended to ANZ customers, who will be able to register credit cards on their iPhones to pay for goods and services by swiping or waving the devices over contactless payment terminals. Via the Apple Pay service, Apple charges card providers for transactions.

ANZ is confident that Apple Pay will be well received by their customers.

The deal with Apple was confirmed by the Australian bank on Thursday morning. In a statement, ANZ CEO Shayne Elliot said that the introduction of Apple’s digital wallet service is a major milestone in their strategy to utilize digital technology to offer their customers a superior experience “and will be a watershed moment in the adoption of mobile payments in Australia.”

Apparently, the demand for Apple Pay in Australia has been huge from ANZ customers. Elliott said that the bank is confident that the security, privacy and convenience of the service will be well received by their clients.

Elliott added that “With the high adoption rates of contactless payments in Australia, our customers will be world leaders in their ability to use their mobiles to make the vast bulk of essential payments.”

Apple Pay in Australia will no doubt boost the country’s adoption of contactless payments.

Currently, over 60% of all card transactions in the nation are contactless, a far higher percentage compared to the United States.

However, digital technology, like Apple’s mobile transactions solution, is making progress in the financial industry. This has prompted traditional Australian banks like ANZ, Westpac, Commonwealth Bank of Australia, and National Australia Bank to improve their digital services.

In addition to launching Apple Pay in Australia, Apple has introduced the service to other countries where banks were reluctant to get on board, such as the United States and Britain. It has also launched its mobile payments service in China and, most recently, in Singapore.

The new Starbucks emoji-themed keyboard app lets you send more than a smile.

When it comes to adopting mobile technology trends, Starbucks has shown time and again that it’s a leader in this field, having released apps and being one of the first to jump on board the mobile payments bandwagon, among other advancements. Therefore, it shouldn’t come as much of a surprise that one of America’s favorite coffeehouse chains has released its very own Starbucks emoji keyboard, which lets users digitally express themselves with Frappauccinos, cake pops, iced coffee and their other favorite Starbucks products.

The app is free for iOS and Android.

The keyboard app is available free for both iOS and Android mobile devices and features a custom keyboard option decked out in the company’s colors and font as well as two pages of Starbucks-inspired emojis. The emoji library includes everything from drinks and treats to the logo and emoji people holding Starbucks products.

To enjoy this fun new application on iPhone, users need to install it and add it to the active keyboard list under settings. They need to allow the app full access so it can be used throughout the phone. The app is activated using the globe key on the bottom line on the standard keyboard. The emoji keyboard functions like most third-party keyboard apps and works with most major messaging apps including Facebook, WhatsApp, and iMessage.

On the flip side, Android users will find the activation process similar to iOS. After installing the app, it can be activated under Language & Input in Settings and should be selected as the standard keyboard. Via Android, the program sends emojis as images through apps instead of placing them within messages.

Could the Starbucks emoji keyboard evolve into something more in the future?

Many consumers weren’t pleased when the company changed its rewards program and app, and some hope that the new keyboard app – although currently nothing unique or ground-breaking for Starbucks – could be the start of something special. Imagine: instead of just sending an emoji to a friend, what if users could actually order coffee via emoji?

While that’s definitely only a sweet dream and a not reality at the moment or in the near future, lovers of this app will be pleased to know that the company intends to add more content to its Starbucks emoji keyboard app throughout the year.