Contactless BLIK on iPhone is no longer just a rumour. PKO BP has broken the ice
On 30 July 2026, in a Lidl store in Warsaw, a transaction took place that mattered far more than its modest value of 5.49 PLN. PKO Bank Polski became the first institution in Poland to carry out a contactless BLIK payment directly from an iPhone — without going through Apple Pay and without a physical card. It is the first real proof that a barrier which has irritated Apple device owners for years is finally starting to crack.
Why this was possible at all — and why only now
An EU law that forced Apple to open the gate
For years, the NFC chip inside iPhones was locked down tight — only Apple Pay was allowed to use it. That changed thanks to the EU's Digital Markets Act (DMA), which obliged Apple to give competing payment solutions access to NFC as well. Apple laid the technical groundwork back in March 2024 with the iOS 17.4 update, but opening the interface was only half the job — the other half was the painstaking integration work on the side of banks and the BLIK operator, which took another two years.
It's worth stressing that this is no cosmetic tweak. Until now, an iPhone owner who wanted to pay contactlessly with BLIK simply couldn't — they were left with entering a BLIK code at the terminal or scanning a QR code. The ability to "tap and pay" was reserved exclusively for Apple Pay and cards added to Apple's own wallet. Opening up NFC access means the Polish payment system regains control over its own user experience, instead of depending on the decisions of a single foreign tech giant.
Why the pilot started with a children's app
It's no accident that the first transaction took place inside the PKO Junior app, designed for the bank's youngest customers. This is a textbook approach to rolling out technologically risky new features — testing them on a smaller, tightly controlled group before releasing them to millions of adult customers with full access to their accounts. According to the bank, making the feature available to all iPhone holders will still take at least a few more months — time needed for load testing, fine-tuning transaction security, and most likely giving other banks a chance to catch up with their own rollouts.
What this means for your wallet today
The end of an artificial split between "better" and "worse" phones
For the millions of Poles using an iPhone, this is a practical revolution in everyday shopping. BLIK is not a side feature — according to 2025 figures, 2.9 billion transactions worth a combined PLN 441.5 billion flowed through the system in Poland, with the number of active users reaching 20.7 million. Until now, Android owners had a clear convenience advantage in this ecosystem — they could already pay contactlessly with BLIK, while iPhone users were stuck entering a code from the app at the terminal. Opening up NFC access levels that gap and genuinely cuts the time spent at the checkout.
Crucially, this change won't cost customers a single zloty — there's no need to switch banks, buy a newer phone model, or pay for any extra subscription. All that will be required is updating the banking app once the feature reaches a wider audience.
Security — questions worth asking yourself
Every new payment solution raises security questions too. Opening the NFC module to multiple apps theoretically creates a larger potential attack surface than a closed model controlled exclusively by Apple Pay. In practice, banks — including PKO BP — are rolling this feature out gradually precisely to fine-tune safeguards: contactless transaction limits, extra confirmation steps for larger amounts, and monitoring for unusual activity. For customers, the takeaway is simple: keep your banking app updated and don't ignore push notifications about new security features that will arrive alongside the full rollout.
The bigger picture: banks are no longer competing on interest rates alone
This story reveals something bigger than one payment feature's technical detail. Polish banks have for several years been competing not just on interest rates or fees, but above all on digital convenience — how quickly and smoothly a customer can manage their money from a smartphone. That's a signal for anyone considering switching banks or choosing their first account: when comparing offers, look beyond promotional welcome bonuses and pay attention to how much a bank actually invests in its mobile app and new payment technologies.
If you're thinking about switching accounts, a good starting point is to review and compare personal accounts currently on the market — look not only at whether the account is fee-free, but also at how functional its mobile app really is. The same goes for saving — if you're keeping surplus cash in a current account instead of an interest-bearing one, it's worth checking today's savings accounts, offered by the most digitally advanced banks. And speaking of taking a holistic view of your finances — for bigger plans, whether buying a flat or consolidating debt, it's worth comparing mortgage offers and personal loan offers before committing to a bank for years to come.
What you should do
For now, the feature is still in pilot phase, so there's nothing you need to do yet — just wait for your bank's announcement that contactless BLIK payments on iPhone are fully available. That said, two things are worth doing right away: first, make sure your banking app is updated to the latest version, since that's exactly how the feature will reach your phone. Second — if you notice your current bank rarely rolls out new technology while competitors move faster on similar conveniences, it's a good moment to check whether your account is still the best choice for you. Poland's banking market is changing faster than ever, and customers who regularly compare offers tend to come out ahead — both in their wallet and in everyday convenience.