Apple reportedly held preliminary talks with Indian banks and regulators to explore the possibility of launching its Apple Pay and Apple Card services in India, according to a new report from Moneycontrol.
The report, citing its own sources, claims that Apple CEO Tim Cook privately met with HDFC Bank CEO and MD Sashidhar Jagdishan during Cook’s last visit to India in April to inaugurate the launch of the first Apple Store locations in the country. The pair discussed the feasibility of launching Apple Card in India, with HDFC Bank as the card issuer similar to Goldman Sachs in the US.
Apple also held discussions with the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) to explore launching Apple Pay in the country, adds the report. Regulations in the country forbid entities other than banks from launching credit cards, and Apple is said to be weighing its options regarding incorporating the NPCI’s Rupay platform or Unified Payments Interface (UPI) to power the company’s fintech initiatives in India.
The discussions also involved the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), the country’s central bank and regulator, on the “modalities” of the card. Apple reportedly asked for “special consideration[s]” in the form of regulatory exemptions to launch the Apple Card in India, as local laws would see Apple required to print the associated card number, issuing bank, and payment processor directly on its card just like any other credit card.
In the US, the titanium-made Apple Card features Goldman Sachs and Mastercard logos on the back, in addition to the complete absence of the card number and other info on the card itself. “These are not liberties that Apple can take in India,” adds the report. Per the RBI’s regulations, Apple will also not be able to store Apple Card users’ details on its own servers, as customer data and transaction data can only be stored by the issuing bank and not its partners.
Apple’s increased focus on India
Apple is committed to expanding its market and manufacturing presence in India as the next growth opportunity for the company following tumultuous US-China relations.
Last April, Cook was in attendance as Apple opened its first two Apple Store retail locations in India. The two new stores are located in Delhi and Mumbai, with Apple BKC in Mumbai already said to be one of the top ten best-performing Apple Store locations in the world. Each store is now rumored to bring in around $3 million in monthly sales revenue.
Apple and its partners are also expanding their manufacturing base in India. As a first, the iPhone 15 is rumored to begin assembly in India simultaneously with China as Apple keeps adding more India-based contract manufacturers to its supply chain mix. The company is also rumored to weigh in the production of MacBooks and iPads in the country following the announcement of a $2 billion manufacturing incentive plan for foreign-based companies.
