​Samsung Pay enters Europe, launches in Spain

Samsung has launched its mobile payment service Samsung Pay in Spain, the company has announced.

The launch there is the first for the mobile payment service in Europe, following its launch in South Korea in August and the US in September last year, and in China in March of this year.

The comparatively late launch in Europe stems from a multitude of regulatory obligations to fulfil there.

Users in Spain can register debit and credit cards of CaixaBank and imaginBank on Samsung Pay. Abanca and Banco Sabadell will also be available there, Samsung said.

Added value will be added in cooperation with Spain's department store franchise El Corte Ingles, among others in the retail and food businesses, the South Korean tech giant said.

The company, via Ipsos, held a survey of Spaniards aged between 35 and 65 and found that they carry more than two debit or credit cards in their wallets. For most purchases, 64 percent used either of their cards. For those aged between 35 and 44, this was 71 percent.

Spaniards wanted a secure, simple, and widely-accepted mobile payment service -- 58 percent of those surveyed -- the company said, adding that Samsung Pay meets this demand.

Together with the Madrid Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Samsung held a briefing on May 18 in the city for SMEs to add merchant partners for the service.

Samsung now has over 200 partners in the banking and finance sector such as American Express, Union Pay, MasterCard, and Visa.

The tech giant announced a partnership with AliPay last month to expand its presence in China.

China has proven the toughest market since launching due to the strength of local vendors, but popularity in its home country and the US has been a boon.

In South Korea, the first country to get the service, Samsung Pay hit 1 trillion won in transactions last month.

In February, it hit $500 million in transactions in the US and South Korea.