CBA (ASX:CBA) share price wobbles amid regulatory confusion over Apple

Regulators are reportedly confused about who's meant to hold Apple to account…

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The Commonwealth Bank of Australia (ASX: CBA) share price is struggling today and it seems regulators are as well.

The Commonwealth Bank is among a number of bodies worried about the foray into the financial system of Apple Inc (NASDAQ: APPL) and Alphabet Inc's (NASDAQ: GOOGL) Google.

However, as the Australian Financial Review reports, regulators are arguing about who should be in charge of looking into international tech giants' position in the financial sector.

Right now, the CBA share price is in the green by 0.06%, trading for $99.36. However, it's been seesawing since the market opened this morning.

Let's take a look at CBA's newly born campaign against Apple's payments system.

Who's meant to regulate Apple and Google?

The CBA share price is wobbling while Australia's regulators reportedly pass the potato on holding Apple and Google to account.

According to the Australian Financial Review, the Reserve Bank of Australia, the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC), the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA), and the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) have all shirked responsibility for the time being.

Commonwealth Bank's CEO Matt Comyn brought the issue up at a parliamentary joint committee on corporations and financial services on Tuesday.

He said Apple Pay accounts for 80% of iPhone 'tap and go' payments. The payments are processed by banks but the banks have no access to an iPhone's near field communication (NFC) abilities.

This apparently means Apple has cemented itself as the sole provider of 'tap and go' payments. It also means banks' apps are less useful than they could otherwise be.

Apple also communicated with the committee. Unsurprisingly, it disagreed with Comyn's statements and claimed its Apple Wallet feature encouraged competition.

The Australian Financial Review reported the Australian Treasury has received a report on the matter.

APRA and ASIC are said to be waiting until the report is made public before deciding on regulatory directions.

CBA share price snapshot

Despite today's wobbles, the CBA share price has been performing well lately.

It has gained 18% year to date. It is also 36% higher than it was this time last year.

Motley Fool contributor Brooke Cooper has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. Suzanne Frey, an executive at Alphabet, is a member of The Motley Fool’s board of directors. The Motley Fool Australia's parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns shares of and has recommended Alphabet (A shares), Alphabet (C shares), and Apple. The Motley Fool Australia's parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has recommended the following options: long March 2023 $120 calls on Apple and short March 2023 $130 calls on Apple. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Alphabet (A shares), Alphabet (C shares), and Apple. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.

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