Apple has teamed up with PayAnywhere to bring Apple Pay to an additional 300,000 merchants across the U.S. The deal allows customers to pay using Apple Pay in stores that use a PayAnywhere credit card reader, which will be sold in Apple Stores starting next month.

PayAnywhere is a $39.95 card reader that allows independent merchants to accept credit card payments through an iOS device. It also has NFC connectivity, allowing contactless payment services like Apple Pay, too.

And thanks to Apple’s new deal with PayAnywhere, Apple Pay users can now take advantage of the technology in an additional 300,000 locations across the country.

“We are very excited to launch sales exclusively in Apple Stores throughout the country,” Marc Gardner, CEO of PayAnywhere, told CNBC. “To demonstrate how simple and easy it is to accept Apple Pay, we have chosen to offer all customers the first $5,000 free in Apple Pay transaction processing with a new PayAnywhere account.”

Merchants who want to accept Apple Pay payments will be able to pick up a PayAnywhere reader from Apple Stores in September, and their first $5,000 worth of transactions is free as part of the deal with Apple. After that, there’s a 2.69% charge per transaction with no monthly fee.

Apple’s goal is to have Apple Pay in 1.5 million locations in the U.S. by the end of 2015. It has already surpassed the 1 million milestone, and its new partnership with PayAnywhere gives the Cupertino company a big push towards its target.

SOURCE CNBC