European Union charges Apple for keeping rivals away from its pay tech

Apple was hit by a formal antitrust complaint from the European Union for restricting access to technology and services that allow users to make payments direct from their iPhone.

Apple could face a fine up to 10 per cent of its global turnover or $36.6 billion based on its revenue last year, though EU penalties rarely reach the cap.

The European Commission said on Monday it sent a so-called statement of objections alleging how the tech giant abuses its dominance over mobile wallets on its devices via its Apple Pay service. 

“We have indications that Apple restricted third-party access to key technology necessary