UK digital markets: CMA uses SMS powers to challenge iOS NFC access terms

The question

How might the CMA, using its Strategic Market Status (SMS) regime, reshape third party near-field communication (NFC) access on iOS in the UK and what does this evidence gathering approach signal about potential UK obligations on access and pricing?

The key takeaway

The CMA is gathering evidence on whether Apple should be required to provide fair and reasonable third party NFC access on iOS (via Host Card Emulation (HCE), the Secure Element (SE), or both) and how that access should be priced. Using its SMS regime, the CMA may impose targeted measures on access terms, including pricing and competitive neutrality. This signals the CMA’s evidence-led route to developing conduct requirements for other “gatekeeper” activities.

The background

On 22 October 2025, the CMA designated Apple as having Strategic Market Status (SMS) in the provision of its mobile platform, enabling targeted interventions under the UK DMCCA regime. The CMA has identified increased access to NFC on Apple smartphones as a lever to unlock innovation and growth by enabling fintechs and other developers to support contactless transactions directly in iOS apps (for payments and other credentials). The CMA links this to the importance of the UK’s strong fintech sector and future contactless use cases including account-to-account payments, digital identity and digital keys.

The development

The CMA has launched an evidence-gathering step (not yet a remedy).

The CMA’s call for evidence ran from 30 June 2026 to 21 July 2026 and is intended to inform a statutory consultation on potential measures in Autumn 2026. The CMA intends to undertake a full effectiveness and proportionality assessment in accordance with the DMCCA.

The CMA is weighing three technical options: HCE-only, SE-only, or dual access.

The CMA notes two technical approaches for enabling contactless transactions on iOS: HCE (tokens from secure cloud storage) and SE (a dedicated high-security, on-device chip). It is consulting on whether Apple should be required to provide access via one approach or both, and notes its current view that stakeholders are unlikely to agree on one approach across all use cases in the foreseeable future.

The CMA’s working diagnosis is that Apple’s existing UK route has not unlocked new entry.

In July 2024, the European Commission accepted commitments from Apple to provide NFC (HCE) access for free within the EEA, after which multiple NFC apps launched in the EU. Apple introduced its NFC (SE) Platform in the UK in October 2024, allowing developer access to NFC(SE) within their own apps subject to terms and fees. However, the CMA states it has not seen new products or services launch in the UK using the platform in the 18 months since launch, suggesting barriers to entry remain high. Stakeholders cited (among other factors) high access fees and divergence between iOS approaches across jurisdictions (and relative to Android) as barriers to scaling.

Pricing is central: the CMA is testing multiple models for “fair and reasonable” fees.

The CMA indicates any intervention is unlikely to work unless the access fee is fair and reasonable. It is seeking evidence on cost-based (including cost-plus), value-based, and downstream-price-linked approaches and highlights the risk of complexity given diverse use cases and uncertainty about future innovation. The CMA is also considering additional pricing principles, including avoiding competitive disadvantage where third parties compete with Apple downstream, offering alternative fee structures, and ensuring clarity and simplicity.

The CMA expects to consult on potential measures in Autumn 2026.

Why is this important?

For enterprise businesses, the key point is what the CMA’s SMS regime allows it to do: impose targeted measures on a mobile-platform gatekeeper where it considers conduct is undermining competition or choice.

The CMA is treating NFC access as a lever to “unlock greater innovation and investment” in UK contactless transactions, potentially expanding commercial opportunities for iPhone-based wallet propositions that currently depend on Apple’s framework.

The CMA’s concern is that Apple’s historic restrictions and the terms and fees of its current UK access route may be deterring third party entry, leaving consumers with fewer choices and weakening incentives to build competing services.

Any practical tips?

• Businesses with “gatekeeper” characteristics should assume that SMS designation can trigger targeted, activity-specific interventions and plan for ongoing regulatory engagement accordingly.
• Treat early CMA evidence-gathering as a commercial planning window: align legal, product, policy, finance and public affairs teams early so the business can respond quickly when consultations land (including on proportionality and effectiveness).
• Maintain an “evidence pack” explaining, with numbers, how terms, fees, processes or access conditions affect entry, innovation and consumer choice, because the CMA is testing whether frameworks deliver outcomes in practice (not just in theory).
• Model regulatory pricing outcomes as a board-level commercial risk: the CMA is openly considering different approaches to “fair and reasonable” pricing and principles aimed at avoiding competitive disadvantage.

Autumn 2026