Apple Pay has launched in India with Axis Bank as its first banking partner, bringing Apple’s contactless payment service to one of the world’s largest digital payments markets after years of delays.
The service became available to Indian users on Tuesday, initially supporting Axis Bank-issued Visa and Mastercard credit cards. Cards issued on India’s domestic RuPay network are not supported at launch.
Customers can add eligible Axis Bank cards to Apple Wallet and use Apple Pay on iPhone, iPad and Apple Watch to make payments in stores, apps and online. Mac support is expected to follow. Transactions can be authenticated using Face ID, Touch ID or the device passcode, without requiring users to enter a PIN or one-time password at checkout.
Apple said Apple Pay would be accepted by millions of merchants across India, including Blinkit, Croma, Ixigo, Reliance brands, Tata 1mg and Zomato. The company has worked with payment service providers including Cashfree, JusPay, Mswipe, Paytm, PayU, Pine Labs, Razorpay and Worldline to expand acceptance across merchant networks.
The launch puts Apple Pay into direct competition with India’s dominant digital payments infrastructure, the Unified Payments Interface. UPI enables instant bank-to-bank transfers and accounts for about 84% of the country’s digital payment volume, according to Reuters. Apple Pay, by contrast, is initially a card-based service and does not support UPI.
Apple’s entry into India follows years of negotiations and regulatory hurdles. The company had remained one of the few major markets where Apple Pay was unavailable despite the rapid growth of Apple’s presence in the country.
The initial rollout is also narrower than Apple’s payment operations in many other markets. HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank and SBI Card were not part of the launch, with Apple continuing discussions with other Indian lenders about adding support.
Axis Bank had 16.3 million credit cards in circulation as of August, making it a significant issuer in India’s credit-card market. The bank’s partnership gives Apple a starting point as it seeks to expand Apple Pay to more banks, cards and merchants across the country.
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Emmanuel Abara Benson is a business journalist and editor covering artificial intelligence, global markets, and emerging technology.
He has previously worked with Business Insider Africa and Nairametrics, reporting on finance, startups, and innovation.
His work focuses on AI, digital economy, and global tech trends.
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