Overview
- Reports published on Tuesday say Apple is targeting a late September or October 2026 window for an India launch, though the company has not confirmed the timing.
- The initial service is expected to focus on contactless card payments via NFC, letting iPhone and Apple Watch users add eligible Visa and Mastercard debit and credit cards to Apple Wallet.
- UPI support is unlikely at launch because using India’s Unified Payments Interface requires clearance from the National Payments Corporation of India and a sponsor bank to route transactions.
- A central sticking point in talks is how much of the card interchange Apple would receive, with Apple seeking about 15–20 basis points per transaction and some banks pushing back toward roughly 10 basis points.
- Industry executives say Apple Pay could raise premium card use and speed in-store checkouts through tokenisation and device authentication, and Apple’s recent resumption of card payments for App Store purchases shows progress on local compliance.