Apple looking at rolling out credit card in India, may tie up with HDFC Bank: Report

Tech giant Apple is holding deliberations with banks and regulators to launch its credit card in India. Apple CEO Tim Cook met HDFC Bank CEO and MD Sashidhar Jagdishan during his April trip to India, said a MoneyControl report.

The iPhone maker also held discussions with the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on the modalities of the card. According to sources cited by the report, the regulator has asked Apple to follow the regular procedure for co-branded credit cards, without offering any special consideration for the company.

The development comes at a time when a large chunk of payments are being increasingly made through mobile phones. Interestingly, Apple is not alone as other tech giants such as Google, Amazon, and Samsung are also actively pursuing expansion into the payments sector with ambitious plans in the financial services space. These companies have developed payment apps and are looking to make significant strides in this area.

Also read: India is incredibly exciting market, a major focus for us, says Apple CEO

Sources told MoneyControl said Apple intends to launch its Apple Card, a co-branded credit card with HDFC Bank in the country. The talks are in the early stages and a decision has not been arrived at, sources added. The nature of the discussion, as well as when Apple plans to launch this in India, could not be determined.

Focus on India

With iPhone sales growing at a rapid pace, India has been a focus country for Apple for the last couple of years. Apple’s revenue in India touched around Rs 50,000 crore or $6 billion in FY23, representing a 50% growth over Rs 33,500 crore (around $4 billion) in FY22. Apple’s global services revenue stands at around $80 billion. Converting a significant portion of these transactions through the Apple Card would have a substantial impact.

The company also launched exclusive retail stores in Delhi and Mumbai during Cook’s visit to India in April. Additionally, the company has been shifting a significant portion of its iPhone production to India and the country could see almost 25% of Apple’s total mobile phone production in the next three to four years.

Also read: Apple unveils $3,500 Vision Pro goggles; will it succeed where others have failed?

Apple currently holds approximately 4% of the overall smartphone market in India, which accounts for roughly two crore users.  If 20-30 per cent of Indian smartphone users switch to iPhone over the next decade, as is the case in other middle-income countries, India could become Apple’s third-largest market, after the US and China.

However, what might have prompted Apple to consider launching the Apple Card in India before Japan or other European countries is the fact that Apple does not currently accept card payments in India. In India, Unified Payments Interface (UPI) powers most App Store purchases, apart from iCloud services such as storage and music.