Apple Pay Cash nears its first international expansion

Apple Pay Cash may not be limited to Americans for much longer. Users in Brazil, Ireland and Spain have all reported seeing the peer-to-peer payment service show up in iOS' Messages app, suggesting that launches in their countries (and potentially more) are just around the bend. Apple hasn't officially announced anything yet, but it's hard to imagine the company asking people to configure the feature and letting it sit unused for more than a short while.

Despite the apparently imminent expansion, it's doubtful that Apple Pay Cash will allow money transfers between countries. As 9to5Mac observed, competing services typically limit you to paying others on your home turf -- the stiff fees alone would discourage across-the-border payments.

An international rollout could be crucial to generating some momentum for Apple's fledgling offering. Rivals like Venmo might be US-only, but others have a broader reach -- Skype's PayPal-based Send Money feature is available in 26 countries as of this writing. If Apple Pay Cash is going to become the go-to option for iPhone and iPad owners looking to repay their friends, it needs to be more than just a one-country product.