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Never one to be outdone by its biggest competitor, Samsung is now looking to launch its own mobile payment service to rival Apple Pay.

Sources told Re/code that the South Korean tech giant is in talks with startup LoopPay to let people pay for goods using their phones.

Samsung has previously allowed NFC payments on certain networks and with partners including Barclaycard, but if it teamed up with LoopPay, the service would be expanded more widely.

Never one to be outdone by its biggest competitor, Samsung is now looking to launch its own mobile payment service to rival Apple Pay (pictured at its launch with Tim Cook). Sources said the Korean tech giant is in talks with startup LoopPay to let people pay for goods using their phones

LoopPay calls itself a 'wallet solution' that lets customer pay with their phones and tablets 'virtually everywhere'.

It consists of an app and a device, which is either a fob or a specially-designed phone case.

The sources revealed that Samsung is already in talks with the Massachusetts-based provider, and prototypes have been created, but there is no word on when the service will launch - if at all.

If the firms do partner up, LoopPay's technology could be built into future models of Samsung devices, including phones, tablets and smartwatches.

The LoopPay app securely stores all payment cards including credit, debit, loyalty and gift cards.

LoopPay (left) calls itself a 'wallet solution' that lets customer pay with their phones and tablets 'virtually everywhere'. It consists of an app and a device, which is either a fob or a phone case. If the firms do partner up, LoopPay's technology could be built Samsung phones (Galaxy S5 pictured right), tablets and watches

These can be used to pay for shopping in 90 per cent of shops and banks in the US.

Customers simply tell the retailer which card they want to use before tapping the device on a reader. 

Apple Pay launched earlier this year and lets people with an iPhone 6 and 6 Plus pay for goods by tapping their handsets on NFC readers.

It works by holding the phone up to a card reader and pressing a finger on the TouchID button.

This confirms the person's identity, and the payment is made as if the user had presented and signed their card.

All details are encrypted and the system stores payment information securely.

If an iPhone is lost, users can suspend all payments via the Find my iPhone service.

Apple Pay is currently available in around 220,000 shops, and 10 banks, in the US.

By comparison, LoopPay is available at more than 90 per cent - or 10 million - shops in the US.

It works on Apple, Samsung, Motorola, LG, HTC and Huawei devices and can additionally be used at more than 5,000 banks and issuers.

Samsung has previously partnered with the likes of Barclaycard and China's UnionPay, among others, to offer NFC-enabled mobile payment services to select customers. 

But its deal with LoopPay would make these services more widely available.  

Samsung has previously partnered with the likes of Barclaycard and China's UnionPay, among others, to offer NFC-enabled mobile payment services (Samsung graphic illustrated) to select customers. But its deal with LoopPay would make these services more widely available

IS THIS THE SAMSUNG GALAXY S6?

Samsung's next generation Galaxy handset has been revealed in a leaked image (pictured), a Dutch website has claimed. The handset, which appears to have a 5.5-inch screen, is rumoured to include a 16 or 20 megapixel camera

Samsung's next generation Galaxy handset has been revealed in a leaked image, a Dutch website has claimed.

The handset, which appears to have a 5.5inch screen, is rumoured to include a 16 or 20 megapixel camera.

The handset is expected to be unveiled at Mobile World Congress, a trade show in Barcelona, which takes place from 2-5 March.

According to the leaked image from a Dutch site, the S6 has a very thin bezel, and a rounded design similar to the iPhone 6. 

A striking feature of the prototype are the thin left and right edges of the screen, and the displacement of the selfie camera toward the center of the top,' it says.

Previous leaks from BGR say the SM-G925F - the codename believed to be assigned to the Galaxy S6 - will feature a Quad HD (2560 x 1440 resolution) display, octa-core processor, Mali-T768 graphics processing unit, and a 16-megapixel rear-facing camera.