Axis Bank joins NBBL’s Banking Connect, expanding interoperable digital payment rails across India

THEBUSINESSBYTES BUREAU

MUMBAI, APRIL 9, 2026

NPCI Bharat BillPay Limited (NBBL), a wholly owned subsidiary of the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI), has announced that Axis Bank, one of India’s largest private sector banks, is now live on the Banking Connect platform. This integration will enable the bank’s 37 million customers to experience a faster checkout process and a more intuitive net-banking journey across more than 4,800 merchants in India.

Banking Connect is now available to customers of eight major banks, including SBI, ICICI Bank, and HDFC Bank, and is also integrated with eleven payment aggregators (PAs). This expanding footprint highlights the platform’s growing relevance and ease of adoption for ecosystem participants. It reflects a gradual industry shift toward interoperable net-banking rails, driving greater efficiency for all stakeholders involved.

The platform offers a simplified onboarding framework that reduces integration time and enables payment aggregators to activate merchants quickly through standardized APIs and toolkits. It also reduces PAs’ reliance on individual bank integrations and legacy bilateral arrangements, resulting in faster and more consistent customer payment journeys. Merchants benefit from a standardized net-banking experience, improved payment reliability, and enhanced customer satisfaction at checkout.

Noopur Chaturvedi, MD & CEO, NBBL, said, “Banking Connect is steadily transforming the way net banking payments are enabled across the ecosystem. The platform’s growing adoption reflects the trust and confidence our partners & customers place in NBBL’s infrastructure. Our focus remains on building future ready digital rails that enhance payment experiences for consumers and strengthen operational efficiency for businesses. The addition of Axis Bank is an encouraging step forward as we continue to support India’s digital payment vision with a scalable, modern, and inclusive framework.”

Arnika Dixit, President & Head – Cards, Payments and Wealth Management, said, “Our integration with the Banking Connect platform marks an important step in simplifying and standardising net banking payments for our customers. By leveraging Banking Connect as a single interoperable switch, we can streamline integrations, improve operational efficiency, and deliver a more seamless checkout experience. As digital payments continue to evolve, we remain focused on adopting modern, scalable infrastructure that enhances convenience for Axis customers and strengthens India’s growing digital payments ecosystem.”

Banking Connect aligns closely with the RBI’s Payment Vision 2028, supporting India’s ongoing transition toward secure, interoperable digital payment rails. The platform’s security architecture, which leverages bank-grade authentication and centralized risk monitoring, ensures a trusted payment experience for both merchants and consumers.

NBBL is further enhancing the platform with upcoming features such as Direct-to-Merchant Settlements, Third Party Verification (TPV), and mandate and lien capabilities, which will expand its utility for businesses with more complex or high-volume payment requirements. With these developments, Banking Connect continues to evolve as a future-ready net-banking infrastructure designed to support India’s expanding digital economy.