India opens antitrust investigation into Google Pay

India’s antitrust body opened an investigation into the Google Pay app, alleging it was abusing its market position and forcing developers to use it. India’s probe comes weeks after the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) filed an antitrust suit against Google for alleged illegal monopolization of the search and ad markets.

Why should we care?
India’s move comes as regulators are increasingly scrutinizing payment platforms. Last week, the U.S. Department of Justice slapped Visa with an antitrust lawsuit, alleging anti-competitive practices from its impending Plaid acquisition. India’s scrutiny of Google Pay is emblematic of regulators’ attention on large payments players, and the Indian case may be an important test for how other regulators will look at Google Pay. India points to Google’s agreements with smartphone manufacturers to have the Google Pay app pre-installed as problematic, a move which it says restricts options for developers. As of 2019, Google Pay had 67 million users in India, and the company faces other antitrust challenges in the country.