Apple Pay launched in India on Tuesday, marking the iPhone maker’s entry into the world’s most populous nation after years of delays. The digital payments service arrived with Axis Bank as its first banking partner, the country’s third-largest private-sector lender, in a market long dominated by India’s state-backed Unified Payments Interface system.
The initial rollout comes with significant limitations. Apple Pay currently supports eligible Axis Bank cards on Visa and Mastercard networks, but notably excludes India’s homegrown RuPay network. Acceptance is restricted to merchants and payment terminals specifically enabled for the service, which could create an uneven experience during the early stages. Supported merchants include popular platforms such as Blinkit, Croma, Ixigo, Reliance brands, Tata 1mg, and Zomato. Apple has partnered with payment service providers including Cashfree, JusPay, Mswipe, Paytm, PayU, Pine Labs, Razorpay, and Worldline to enable merchant acceptance.
The launch represents a strategic challenge for Apple in a market that operates fundamentally differently from card-heavy economies like the United States. India’s digital payments landscape is dominated by UPI, which handles the bulk of digital transactions by allowing consumers to make instant bank-to-bank transfers without relying on cards. Apple Pay, by contrast, is card-based and requires individual issuers and payment infrastructure providers to integrate with the service, making a broad rollout considerably more complex.
Commercial terms have emerged as a significant sticking point with India’s largest banks. Apple is seeking a fee of approximately 20 basis points, or 0.2 percent, on transactions, which represents a substantial portion of the roughly 40 to 50 basis points of margin available in the payments layer. This fee structure aligns with Apple Pay’s commercial model in other markets, but has prevented several major players from participating at launch. HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank, and SBI Card are not supporting Apple Pay initially as negotiations over these commercial terms continue.
Despite these constraints, Apple Pay could find a receptive audience among India’s growing base of iPhone users, who tend to be more affluent and are more likely to use premium credit cards. Apple accounted for 28 percent of India’s smartphone market by value in 2025, up from 23 percent the previous year. The transaction fees would provide Apple with another revenue stream to monetize its expanding Indian customer base, potentially making the service economically significant even if it remains a niche offering compared to UPI’s dominance.
The payments service launch adds another dimension to Apple’s expanding presence in India. The country now accounts for about a quarter of global iPhone production, a share that could rise to 30 to 35 percent over the next five years. At launch, eligible Axis Bank customers can add their credit cards to Apple’s Wallet app and use Apple Pay for online purchases as well as contactless payments at supported terminals, though acceptance may vary depending on whether individual payment terminals and acquiring banks have enabled the service.