Apple is set to launch Apple Pay in India on Tuesday with Axis Bank as its first banking partner, according to people familiar with the matter, TechCrunch reported. The rollout will initially be limited, and Apple did not respond to a request for comment.
Eligible Axis Bank Visa and Mastercard cards will be supported, but RuPay cards will not. Use will also depend on whether merchants and payment terminals have enabled the service. Customers will be able to add eligible credit cards to Apple Wallet for online purchases and contactless payments at supported terminals, the people said.
Apple Pay is card-based, unlike India’s Unified Payments Interface (UPI), which enables direct bank-to-bank payments. UPI handles most digital payments in India, where QR code payments from bank accounts are commonplace. The source says Apple Pay will initially serve a smaller card payments market, and acceptance may vary by terminal.
Commercial terms remain under discussion with some major banks. Apple is seeking a transaction fee of about 20 basis points, according to the people, compared with roughly 40 to 50 basis points of margin in the payments layer. HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank and SBI Card are not expected to support the service at launch, one person told TechCrunch. The companies did not respond to requests for comment.
Apple’s share of India’s smartphone market by value was 28% in 2025, up from 23% a year earlier, according to Counterpoint Research, cited in an earlier report. Business Standard reported last month, citing an Indian government official, that India accounts for about a quarter of global iPhone production, a share that could reach 30% to 35% over the next five years.
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