Apple has announced that 35 percent of the retailers in the United States - equivalent to about four million locations - now accept Apple Pay.

In 2014, only four percent of US retailers accepted Apple Pay as a payment method. Now, Apple Pay Chief Jennifer Bailey has said that the 35 percent adoption rate of the payment system is estimated to increase to two out of every three merchants in the country by 2017. The Verge reported that the growth is largely influenced by retailers and payment processing companies who have chosen to partner with Apple's system.

For instance, Square (SQ) has inked a partnership with Apple under which the Square Cash mobile app will be integrated with Apple Pay. This would allow Apple users to transfer money from their Square Cash virtual card to their Apple wallet.

Blackhawk Network has also announced that it would be integrating e-gifts, loyalty, and rewards programs into Apple Pay. The partnership would allow consumers to pay using their Apple wallet, while simultaneously earning rewards and loyalty points when they purchase from participating merchants. The company said that this initiative was driven by the fact that a lot of mobile transactions were made through Apple Pay.

Bailey said that Apple is working towards building strong partnerships to increase the growth of its service in the market. According to Apple Insider, the reason that Apple Pay also works with partners is because of its unique features. Apparently, Apple Pay does not store any record of transactions.

Bailey also believes that the rise of EMV chips is another reason why consumers are shifting towards Apple Pay. The "dip and pay" method gets a lot of consumers confused, so Apple's touchless solution is more appealing to them. But she also said that the company is not aiming to compete with the EMV, but rather, to build more partners to make consumers see that Apple Pay is a more convenient option.

On Apple's future plans, Bailey hinted that Apple Pay might one day, replace physical wallets.