Reuters reported Apple is preparing to launch Apple Pay in India next month, with Axis Bank first in a phased rollout. The initial offer will cover Visa and Mastercard credit cards, not UPI, which accounts for about 84% of India's digital-payment volume.
The rollout follows a 2025 RBI rule change permitting biometric authentication for card payments. Previously, SMS one-time passwords required for many card transactions conflicted with Apple Pay’s Face ID and Touch ID model. Axis Bank had about 16.26 million active credit cards in July.
UPI has more than 550 million users, while PhonePe and Google Pay together process about 80% of its transaction value. Reuters reported that Apple has discussed partnerships with HDFC Bank and ICICI Bank, but commercial terms have not been agreed. Insider Monkey assesses the near-term financial impact as likely modest, saying broader bank partnerships and eventual UPI integration would make the opportunity more valuable.
