Apple Pay could launch in India by October, but UPI may be missing initially
Apple Pay could finally make its India debut by late September or October, nearly a decade after Apple first indicated plans to bring its payments service to the country. However, the initial rollout is expected to focus on credit cards rather than UPI, potentially limiting its appeal in a market where UPI dominates everyday digital payments.
According to a Business Standard report citing sources, Apple is in discussions with Indian banks and is expected to initially support credit cards issued on global networks such as Visa and Mastercard. Apple hasn’t yet commented on the reported launch plans.
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Apple Pay India launch
The first phase is expected to enable contactless card payments through compatible iPhones and Apple Watches at NFC-enabled point-of-sale terminals. Users would presumably be able to add eligible cards to Apple Wallet and authenticate payments using Apple’s existing security features.
The more significant, and glaring omission for India, could be UPI. Apple would need approval from the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI), as well as a sponsor bank partnership, to support UPI transactions. The report suggests that these requirements mean UPI will not be part of the initial launch.
That would make Apple’s offering different from services such as Google Pay and PhonePe, where UPI is central to the payment experience. Apple Pay’s initial value proposition in India would instead be closer to a digital wallet for credit cards, particularly for contactless transactions, which is essentially how it works outside of India.
Apple is reportedly negotiating the fee it would receive from card issuers. It is seeking around 15-20 basis points from each transaction, while some banks have proposed a lower figure of about 10 bps. The outcome of those discussions could influence which cards are supported at launch.
Apple first publicly discussed bringing Apple Pay to India in 2017, when then-senior vice president Eddy Cue said the company “definitely” wanted to launch the service here. Plans subsequently faced regulatory and technical hurdles, particularly around UPI and India’s payment data localisation requirements.
The reported launch now comes as Apple expands its services ecosystem in India. The company recently resumed accepting credit and debit cards for App Store purchases and subscriptions after complying with India’s card-tokenisation requirements.
For iPhone and Apple Watch users, Apple Pay could make contactless credit card payments more convenient, especially for premium cardholders. However, the absence of UPI would be a notable limitation at launch. Until Apple adds UPI support, users who rely heavily on QR-code payments are likely to continue using existing apps such as Google Pay or PhonePe alongside Apple Pay.
