PhonePe and Visa have partnered to launch tap-to-pay, cross-border QR payments, and smartphone-based card acceptance for merchants.
The partnership will expand PhonePe’s card payment offerings beyond online checkout, allowing Indian users to pay at stores and across overseas markets without carrying a physical card
Tap to Pay is being rolled out in phases for Android users, while Cross Border Scan to Pay will become available across 14 international markets
Walmart-backed fintech major PhonePe
has partnered with global card network Visa to launch three cardless payment solutions for consumers and merchants in India.
The partnership will introduce Tap to Pay for domestic in-store transactions, Cross Border Scan to Pay for payments overseas, and Smart Accept, which will enable small merchants to accept contactless card payments directly on their smartphones.
With Tap to Pay, Android users will be able to tokenise their Visa credit or debit cards on the PhonePe app and make contactless payments by tapping their smartphones at compatible point-of-sale (PoS) terminals. The feature is being rolled out in phases starting today (September 9).
PhonePe said the feature would also work in low-connectivity environments. Notably, PhonePe launched a similar Tap & Pay feature for Mastercard cardholders last year.
Cross Border Scan to Pay will allow users to scan Visa-supported QR codes and pay through their tokenised cards while travelling abroad. The service will be rolled out across 14 international markets, including Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam, Indonesia, Sri Lanka, Japan, China, and South Korea.
PhonePe said the feature would be launched soon but did not disclose a specific timeline. It claimed that it would become the first Indian app to offer Visa’s cross-border QR payment functionality.
The announcement comes a day after Prime Minister Narendra Modi called for connecting UPI with the payment systems of more countries, particularly those with large Indian diasporas and strong trade ties with India.
While PhonePe and Visa’s cross-border offering will run on Visa’s card network rather than UPI, it similarly seeks to make overseas payments easier for Indian users. UPI is currently operational across 11 countries.
The partnership also includes Smart Accept, which will allow small merchants to accept card payments by letting customers tap physical cards or tokenised mobile wallets against the merchant’s smartphone. This would remove the need for merchants to purchase a separate PoS machine.
Transactions made through Smart Accept will be integrated with PhonePe’s existing merchant QR dashboard for daily reconciliation and dispute resolution. However, PhonePe did not disclose when the service would become available to merchants.
The latest offerings build on PhonePe’s device-tokenisation solution launched in February 2025. The solution allows users to store tokenised credit and debit cards on their devices and use them for bill payments, recharges, travel bookings, and transactions at merchants integrated with PhonePe’s payment gateway.
Once a Visa card is saved on PhonePe, users will be able to use the tokenised card for online checkout, tap-to-pay transactions at physical stores, and QR-based payments in supported overseas markets.
The partnership was unveiled at the Global Fintech Fest (GFF) 2026 in Mumbai. PhonePe cofounder and CPTO Rahul Chari said the tie-up would bring online tokenisation, tap-to-pay, and cross-border QR payments together on the platform.
It is pertinent to mention that PhonePe is also preparing to go public. The company filed its UDRHP with SEBI in January for an OFS-only IPO, under which Walmart, Tiger Global, Microsoft, and General Atlantic plan to pare their stakes.
However, it paused its IPO plans in March amid geopolitical tensions in West Asia and volatility in global equity markets.
On the financial front, PhonePe’s operating revenue rose 11.5% to ₹7,920.5 Cr in FY26 from ₹7,105 Cr in the previous fiscal year. However, its net loss widened 62% to ₹2,792 Cr from ₹1,727.4 Cr in FY25.
Source: Inc42
