Apple is about to face some competition in the digital wallet space in Europe as the first alternative to Apple Wallet is gearing up for launch. British company Curve is ready to introduce its competing Wallet app as soon as Apple opens up its contactless payment system for other apps to use.

According to reports from The Times, Apple is still working out some technical issues, but Curve is all set to go once everything is sorted out. This London fintech company will be the first real challenger to Apple Wallet once the tech giant allows other apps to utilize the iPhone’s NFC chip for payments, as mandated by EU law. Curve believes this change will help banks save millions of euros currently paid in transaction fees to Apple.

Here’s how Curve’s system will operate:

– Download the app and set it as your default payment method
– When you want to make a tap-and-go payment on your iPhone, Curve will be the option that appears

Currently, Apple Pay is the only option for tap-and-go payments on an iPhone. While Curve claims it will be the first alternative to Apple Wallet, rumors suggest that other companies like Vipps MobilePay are also working on their own options. It’s worth noting that these alternative wallets will initially be available only for iPhone users in Europe.

In a separate development, the Department of Justice in the US has accused Apple of creating a monopoly with its iPhone. The DOJ argues that Apple’s dominance in the smartphone market makes it challenging for others to introduce alternative digital wallets since they wouldn’t reach many iPhone users. With investigations into Apple’s business practices intensifying, changes might be on the horizon in the US as well.