Google Wallet will launch in India, according to a preview of the app that the company posted on the Google Play store in the country, and later deleted.
Although not downloadable from the Indian Play Store, some Android users in the country have been able to use the current Google Wallet app, as per Beebom. However, its functionality is restricted: users can only add credit and debit cards for contactless payments, with no support for Indian businesses or local loyalty programmes.
Unlike its US version, Google Pay in India uses the Indian government-backed framework Unified Payments Interface (UPI) to enable payments. This is one reason why Google Pay is different in India, and one reason why it might choose to continue giving users a separate option if they are already using it.
Google Pay is the second most used UPI app in India after Walmart’s PhonePe, giving Google an apparent reason to continue to support it while offering digital wallet-related experiences through the Wallet app. The Google Pay app initiated more than 5 billion transactions valued at over USD 83 billion in March 2024, per the data posted by the UPI parent organisation National Payments Corporation of India.
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