India leads global tokenisation in online card payments
India has become the world's most tokenised market for online card payments, with more than 900 million payment tokens in circulation, according to Suresh Sethi, Group Country Manager for India and South Asia at Visa. Speaking at the launch of Visa Payment Passkey in Mumbai on Thursday, Sethi noted that the country's digital payments ecosystem has evolved significantly and is entering a new phase focused on trust and security.
"Today, India is the world's most tokenised market for online card payments with more than 900 million payment tokens and almost 500 million Visa tokens as part of that," Sethi stated.
Three phases of digital payments evolution in India
Sethi explained that widespread mobile connectivity has brought hundreds of millions of Indians into the digital economy, with the evolution of digital payments occurring in three distinct phases. The first phase focused on financial inclusion through the Jan Dhan-Aadhaar-Mobile (JAM) trinity. The second phase was driven by scale via initiatives such as UPI, tokenisation, and widespread digital acceptance, making electronic payments a mainstream mode of transaction.
According to Sethi, India is now entering the third phase, where strengthening trust in digital payments has become the key priority. "The Reserve Bank of India's progressive regulatory framework has played a very instrumental role in strengthening the security of digital payments. Tokenisation is a very powerful example," he said.
RBI framework enables alternative authentication
Sethi added that the RBI's framework has enabled alternative mechanisms for additional factor authentication beyond one-time passwords (OTP), opening the next chapter in India's digital payments journey. He also shared details about the newly launched Visa Payment Passkey, which allows consumers to authenticate online card transactions using biometric methods such as fingerprint or facial recognition, or through a device PIN or pattern instead of OTPs.
"It enables consumers to authenticate transactions by using the secure capabilities already built into the device they use every day, whether through fingerprint, facial recognition, device PIN or pattern. This strengthens protection against risks arising from OTP phishing while improving the overall user experience," Sethi said.
AI and the future of authentication
Looking ahead, Sethi said artificial intelligence is transforming digital commerce, and authentication systems need to evolve accordingly. He noted that intelligent assistants and connected devices will increasingly participate in commerce, making secure, seamless and resilient authentication more important than ever. The Visa Payment Passkey is built on globally accepted FIDO standards and is designed to strengthen protection against OTP phishing while making digital payments faster and more seamless.
