Apple Pay launches in India, letting eligible Axis Bank Visa and Mastercard credit cardholders add their cards to Apple Wallet on iPhone, iPad, and Apple Watch

Apple Pay adds a new contactless payment option for eligible credit card holders in India.

Apple Pay has officially launched in India, more than a decade after its initial debut in the US. The service is now available on iPhone, iPad, and Apple Watch, with Mac support coming soon. Initially, users with eligible Visa and Mastercard credit cards issued by Axis Bank can add their cards to Apple Wallet. This allows them to make NFC contactless payments at supported merchants, in apps, and on websites across India. Apple positions Apple Pay as a complementary service to India's dominant UPI payment system, focusing on providing a secure, private, and convenient way for existing cardholders to make transactions without needing to carry physical cards or repeatedly enter details. The launch is supported by partnerships with Axis Bank, Visa, and Mastercard, and follows regulatory developments enabling biometric authentication for card payments.

Apple Pay's entry into India, a market dominated by UPI, signals a strategic move to capture a segment of users who prefer card-based transactions and value the convenience of contactless payments. By focusing on complementarity with UPI rather than competition, Apple aims to integrate its service into the existing digital payments landscape, leveraging the increasing adoption of NFC technology and e-commerce. This launch also underscores Apple's broader ambition for the Wallet app to become a comprehensive digital replacement for physical wallets, extending beyond payments to include features like transit passes and digital keys.

The rollout with Axis Bank, Visa, and Mastercard suggests a phased approach, with an expected expansion to more banks and card issuers over time. This gradual expansion will be key to Apple Pay's success in a diverse market like India. Furthermore, the emphasis on security and privacy through tokenization and biometric authentication addresses user concerns and aligns with evolving regulatory frameworks, potentially influencing future payment service integrations and consumer adoption patterns.