Apple to launch its credit card soon in India

Jul 01,2023
2 min read
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During the launch of Apple stores in India, CEO Tim Cook met with HDFC Bank CEO and MD Sashidhar Jagdishan in April, anonymous sources told the business website. However, Mint couldn't independently verify the news.

At present, neither Apple nor HDFC Bank has made any official statements regarding the deal. The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has also not issued any official confirmation.

The iPhone maker is also holding talks with the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) to possibly launch Apple Pay in the country. It is not clear whether discussions were related to the credit card being powered by the Rupay platform or the unified payments interface (UPI). Rupay credit card can be linked to UPI as well. Only banks are allowed to launch credit cards in India while UPI makes it easier for customers to make fast payments by scanning QR codes.

Apple Card available Countries list

As of now, Apple operates its premium credit card in the USA. The card was launched in joint collaboration with Goldman Sachs and Mastercard. It is made of titanium metal and is positioned as a high-end offering.

Features of Apple Card

Customers using the Apple Card for making regular purchases with the physical card can earn upto 1% of cashback, which increases to 2% if payment is done with Apple Pay.
For those who are using the card for making payment at Apple stores and selected partners, cashback percentage reaches to 3%.
There is no late fees charged by Apple to its Apple card holders.
The company does not charge on foreign transaction, returned payment, or annual credit card fees.
However, users have to pay interest fees generated for carrying balance.
Savings: Apple card owners can open 4.15% savings account (No minimum balance limit) to deposit their daily cash.
Every customer will get a unique card number for each device.
The number is stored ina secure element which is used by Apple Pay to handle transactions and on-device cryptographic functions.

Conclusion

The Cupertino-based tech giant had also held discussions with the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on the modalities of the card, Moneycontrol has learned. According to one of the sources mentioned above, the regulator has asked Apple to follow the regular procedure for co-branded credit cards, without offering any special consideration for the company.