As October sets a record for UPI transactions, where else in the world can you use it?

In October, Unified Payments Interface (UPI) transactions hit a record value of Rs 17.16 trillion, marking a 9% increase from September's Rs 15.8 trillion.

This surge also extended to the volume of transactions, reaching a new high of 11.41 billion, up 8% from 10.56 billion in September.

UPI, which stands for Unified Payments Interface, is India's swift mobile payment system. It allows people to make payments 24/7 using a unique Virtual Payment Address. You can use it to send money to others or pay for items at stores.

What

• In October, people in India used a payment system called UPI extensively.
• The amount of money they sent and received using UPI reached a significant number of Rs 17.16 trillion.
• This figure indicates a 9% increase compared to September when it amounted to Rs 15.8 trillion.
• Additionally, numerous transactions occurred, such as purchasing items or sending money to someone.
• In October, they conducted 11.41 billion of these transactions, representing an 8% increase compared to September's 10.56 billion.

These figures, provided by the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI), illustrate a considerable increase compared to last year, with a 56% surge in volume and a 42% rise in value compared to October 2022. In August, UPI transactions stood at 10.58 billion in volume and Rs 15.76 trillion in value.

Where else in the world can you use UPI?

The organisation responsible for UPI in India, the National Payments Corp. of India (NPCI), aims to ensure that only accounts adhering to the rules of the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA) can use UPI.

They are also working on integrating India's UPI system with other countries, known as the UPI Global initiative.

Europe

• In October 2022, Worldline, a prominent payments company, partnered with NIPL to facilitate the use of Indian payment methods in Europe.
• They plan to utilise a product called Worldline QR, which can accept all types of QR-based payments.
• Initially focusing on countries like BENELUX (Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg), and Switzerland, they aim to expand this payment method to more European countries.

Singapore

• In February 2023, India's UPI collaborated with Singapore's PayNow to expedite and reduce the cost of transferring money between the two countries.
• Under this partnership, users of UPI and PayNow can effortlessly send money to each other without the need for the other country's payment system.
• Initially, Indian users can send up to Rs 60,000 in a day, equivalent to about SGD 1,000.
• Several banks such as State Bank of India, Indian Overseas Bank, Indian Bank, and ICICI Bank are facilitating the process, with more banks expected to join later.

Malaysia

• In Malaysia, NIPL established a partnership with Liquid Group, a company facilitating digital payments across borders.
• This collaboration enables people in 10 countries in North and Southeast Asia, including Malaysia, to use QR-based UPI payments.
• For Malaysia, NIPL joined forces with Merchantrade Asia Sdn. Bhd., a leading fintech company and the largest Money Services Business operator in Malaysia.

United Kingdom

• In August 2022, the United Kingdom and India agreed to collaborate on QR code transactions.
• To facilitate this, NIPL partnered with PayXpert, a company offering payment solutions.
• They are developing a seamless payment platform in the UK.
• As part of this agreement, PayXpert will make Indian payment solutions available in the UK on all their Android point-of-sale (POS) devices for in-store payments.
• This includes the utilization of UPI-based QR code payments, with plans to add the option for RuPay card payments in the future.

Nepal

• Nepal adopted UPI for digital payments in March 2022.
• It collaborated with Gateway Payments Service Pvt Ltd and Manam Infotech Private Limited to enable real-time UPI payments between individuals and for shopping at stores.
• PhonePe was the first Indian fintech company to support cross-border UPI payments, allowing people to use their Indian bank accounts for payments in places like the UAE, Singapore, Mauritius, Nepal, and Bhutan.
• Paytm also plans to support UPI Global payments soon.

Oman

• In October 2022, Oman partnered with NPCI to connect UPI to their payment system.
• They made a formal agreement in November between NPCI and the Central Bank of Oman (CBO).

UAE

• In April 2022, BHIM UPI was made available at NEOPAY terminals in the UAE.
• NEOPAY is part of Mashreq bank.
• This helps many Indians who visit the UAE to pay using BHIM UPI easily and safely.

Bhutan

• Bhutan was the first country to allow UPI transactions through the BHIM App in July 2021.
• NPCI International Payments Ltd (NIPL) and the Royal Monetary Authority (RMA) of Bhutan joined forces to make BHIM UPI QR-based payments possible in Bhutan.
• BHIM means Bharat Interface for Money, and it's an app made by NPCI for mobile payments.

France

Recently, the Prime Minister, Narendra Modi, announced that UPI will soon be operational in France. This means that when people from India visit France, they can use UPI to make payments in Indian rupees.

Consequently, Indian tourists in France will find it more convenient, as they won't need to carry large amounts of foreign currency or cards.

UPI simplifies the spending process, making it easy and hassle-free.