Apple Pay is now live in India on iPhone, iPad and Apple Watch, with Mac support coming soon. Axis Bank credit cards are the first to be supported.
Apple announced today that customers with Axis Bank-issued Visa and Mastercard credit cards can add them to Apple Wallet and pay in stores, in apps and on the web. Apple says checkout does not require a PIN or an OTP. The rollout matches earlier reports that Apple would start with Axis Bank as its first partner.
Axis Bank Credit Cards Are the Starting Point for Apple Pay in India
There are two ways to add a card. Axis Bank customers can add one straight to Apple Wallet from the latest version of the Axis Bank app. Anyone else with an eligible card can open the Wallet app on iPhone, tap the plus sign and follow the steps.
Apple Pay in India requires an iPhone XR or later running iOS 18 or later. Apple Watch Series 6 or later with watchOS 11 or later also works, as long as it is paired with an iPhone XR or later.
In stores, users double-click the side button or Home button, authenticate with Face ID, Touch ID or a passcode if prompted, and hold the top of the iPhone or the display of the Apple Watch near the contactless reader. Online, Apple Pay on iPhone and iPad skips account creation and the retyping of contact, card and shipping details. Cards keep earning the same rewards and benefits they do today.
Jennifer Bailey, Apple’s vice president of Apple Pay and Apple Wallet, pointed to the convenience of “simply tapping to pay in stores without an extra app, PIN, or OTP.” Axis Bank MD and CEO Amitabh Chaudhry said support for both networks gives the bank’s credit card customers more choice and flexibility.
Zomato, Blinkit, Croma and Reliance Brands Accept Apple Pay at Launch
Apple says millions of merchants across India accept Apple Pay from day one. The named partners are Apple Store locations, Blinkit, Chaayos, Comet, Croma, Interflora, Ixigo, Le15 Patisserie, Reliance brands, Tata 1mg and Zomato. Any terminal that takes NFC payments also works.
To get there, Apple worked with payment service providers including Cashfree, JusPay, Mswipe, Paytm, PayU, Pine Labs, Razorpay and Worldline. More merchants and apps are coming over time.
UPI is not mentioned in Apple’s announcement. Earlier reports said UPI support was not expected at launch.
Apple Pay Keeps Real Card Numbers Away From Merchants and Apple’s Servers
When a card is added, the actual number is not stored on the device or on Apple’s servers, and Apple does not share it with the merchant. A unique Device Account Number is assigned instead. It is encrypted and kept in the Secure Element, a certified chip built to hold payment data.
Apple also says it does not retain transaction information that can be tied back to the user. If an iPhone is lost or stolen, the Find My app can locate it, lock it or suspend payments from that device.
The card networks backed the same approach. Gautam Aggarwal, Mastercard’s president of India and South Asia, said every Apple Pay transaction uses a unique, cryptographically secured token. Suresh Sethi, Visa’s group country manager of India and South Asia, described the launch as a pairing of Apple’s consumer experience with Visa’s network and tokenisation.
The India launch follows Apple Pay’s debut in the Philippines in August. Apple Pay is now available in more than 90 countries and regions and works with more than 11,000 bank and network partners worldwide.
Axis Bank had 16.26 million active credit cards as of July, which makes it India’s fourth-largest issuer. Apple has also held talks with HDFC Bank and ICICI Bank, and the next issuer to sign will decide how fast Apple Pay grows here.
The timing fits Apple’s business in the country, which passed $10 billion in annual sales for the first time this year. Anyone new to the service can start with our guide to Apple Pay and Apple Wallet.
