Following initial launch in the US earlier this month, Fitbit’s payment service is also live in the UK as the company looks to do battle with rival platforms from Apple, Samsung and Android.

Fitbit announced in August it would launch the service, dubbed Fitbit Pay, on its new Ionic smartwatch, after striking deals with Visa, Mastercard and Amex.

The device includes an NFC chip, allowing transactions to be processed in a similar way to wearable payment services already available through Android Pay, Samsung Pay and Apple Pay.

In the UK, availability of Fitbit Pay is initially limited to customers from Starling Bank, a relatively new financial outfit in the country which operates without branches.

Fitbit is expected to partner with more banks and bigger institutions in the UK in the future, according to Engadget.

Sales of the Ionic smartwatch began on 1 October in the US, with the payment service launching at the same time.