Apple in talks with banks to start payment service in India
It marks another step in the company’s push to expand in the country of 1.4 billion people with a rapidly increasing middle class
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[MUMBAI] Apple is in discussions with key Indian banks and global card networks in preparation to start Apple Pay in the world’s most populous country.
The iPhone maker is in talks with ICICI Bank, HDFC Bank and Axis Bank, as it aims to introduce its payment service around the middle of 2026, sources said.
The timeline remains fluid, but the talks indicate an approaching launch.
Apple is also discussing the plan with payment networks Mastercard and Visa, they added, asking not to be named because the deliberations are private.
The company declined to comment, while representatives of the banks and payment networks did not immediately respond to requests for comments.
The planned launch marks another step in its push to expand in the country of 1.4 billion people with a rapidly increasing middle class.
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While its market share is still small in a region dominated by the less-expensive Android devices, the company’s increased manufacturing and retail presence in India has helped it make inroads.
Apple Pay in India is expected to support its state-backed Unified Payments Interface (UPI), alongside card-based payments.
UPI, which allows Indian customers to instantly transfer money and pay bills, dominates the country’s digital payments space.
The National Payments Corporation of India, which operates and manages UPI, did not respond to a request for comments. The Times of India earlier reported the country’s plans for Apple Pay.
Rival Alphabet’s Google Pay, Walmart-controlled PhonePe and Amazon.com are among the global players already operating digital payments platforms in India – alongside homegrown players such as Paytm.
In late 2025, the Reserve Bank of India set new rules that allowed biometric authentication, such as fingerprint or facial recognition, for digital payments.
The country’s authentication mechanisms previously largely relied on one-time passwords sent via a text message.
Apple Pay depends on face or touch identification to approve in-person payments via Tap To Pay on websites and through apps.
With more than 750 million smartphone users on cheap mobile data and a state-backed push, India is one of the world’s fastest-growing markets for digital payments – serving as a potential gateway for Apple to grow services revenue in the region.
The company is known to take a cut of Apple Pay transactions.
Given the prevalence of mobile payments in the region, an Apple Pay launch could boost demand for its hardware.
The feature is built into Apple Watches, iPhones, iPads and Macs. Apple has steadily increased its market share to about 10 per cent of India’s smartphone sales, leaving it significant room for further growth.
It is also using India as a key production base to export iPhones to the US, diversifying its manufacturing footprint away from China.
The move has helped shield customers in its home market from price markups due to US President Donald Trump’s tariffs on China.
At the same time, it is rapidly expanding its retail presence in India. It opened its sixth store in Mumbai on Thursday (Feb 26).
Apple CEO Tim Cook has frequently said that India sales are growing quickly, making the market a key lever for its overall growth. BLOOMBERG
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