Users can sideload the Google Wallet app in India and add their debit or credit cards to make contactless payments using a phone with NFC connectivity.
A cached version of Google's screenshots showing local Google Wallet integrations
Photo Credit: Google
Google Wallet could soon be launched in India with support for local integrations, according to a report. The search giant recently listed the Google Wallet app on the Play Store, with screenshots showing support for Indian banks, airlines and other services that offer loyalty points. It is currently unavailable to download for users in India via the Google Play store, but users can sideload the app and add bank cards for contactless payments. The app will reportedly work alongside Google Pay for users in the country.
Editor's note: This article has been updated to include a Google spokesperson's statement.
TechCrunch spotted the listing for the Google Wallet app on the Play Store with screenshots showing local integrations with SBI, Air India, and PVR Inox. Google replaced the images with US-specific ones after the publication reached out the company, but a cached version of the Play Store listing shows four India-specific screenshots.
“While we don't have anything new to share right now, we're always working to bring more convenience to people's digital experiences in India. We're continuing to invest in the Google Pay app to give people easy, secure access to digital payments,” a Google spokesperson told Gadgets 360.
It's currently unclear whether the Google Wallet app will be launched in India in the future, and whether it would coexist alongside the UPI-based Google Pay app in India, which competes with apps like Paytm, PhonePe, BHIM, and Amazon Pay in India.
Gadgets 360 was able to confirm that the Google Wallet app isn't available to download via the Play Store, but it works when sideloading the latest APK on an Android smartphone. At the moment, you can only add a credit or debit card to the app, which can be used for making contactless payments, while the loyalty points system teased via the Play Store listing appear to be disabled.
In its current form, the Google Pay app offers greater functionality to users as it supports both contactless payments — on smartphones with NFC support — as well as Unified Payments Interface (UPI) payments. The company could eventually launch the Google Wallet app in India, and it remains to be seen whether the Pay and Wallet apps will be merged, a decision that Google has taken in other countries.
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