- India’s digital payment systems like the Unified Payments Interface (UPI) are steadily becoming globally attractive amid measures to enable seamless cross-border transactions.
- It’s been six years since UPI (Unified Payments Interface) was introduced as a payment system in India.
- Japan is ‘seriously’ considering joining India’s Unified Payments Interface (UPI) system to enable cross-border transactions between people in both countries.
- NPCI plans to take UPI to Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, and other Gulf countries.
- According to a report UPI transactions are expected to reach a milestone of 1 billion transactions per day by 2026-27.
India’s digital payment systems like the Unified Payments Interface (UPI) are steadily becoming globally attractive amid measures to enable seamless cross-border transactions. This is lowering the cost of fund transfers and remittance payments. Overseas markets accepting UPI payments include Singapore, Malaysia, UAE, France, BENELUX countries, Nepal, UK, to name a few.
It’s been six years since UPI (Unified Payments Interface) was introduced as a payment system in India. During this period, not only has it become a revolution in the financial lives of Indians, but in fact, it is being adopted by other countries as well. Especially this year, India’s finance ministry, RBI, and NPCI (National Payments Corporation of India) have inked deals with multiple countries to promote UPI adoption abroad.
In April 2022, NPCI International Payments Ltd (NIPL), the international arm of the National Payment Corporation of India, announced that BHIM UPI has been made live at NEOPAY terminals, across the UAE. This initiative will empower millions of Indians who travel to the UAE, to safely and conveniently make payments using BHIM UPI. NIPL and NEOPAY, the payment subsidiary of Mashreq Bank, partnered last year to create the acceptance infrastructure in the UAE.
Japan is ‘seriously’ considering joining India’s Unified Payments Interface (UPI) system to enable cross-border transactions between people in both countries, according to a report. Japan and India aim to boost digital collaboration by creating interoperability through the real-time funds transfer system to ease digital payments.
NPCI is trying to establish bank-to-bank transfer systems with Gulf countries in a bid to simplify cross-border remittances. India will soon take its Unified Payments Interface (UPI) service to Gulf countries, such as Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, and others. India has been trying to establish UPI links with other countries in a bid to establish a seamless payment system.
Transactions from mobile numbers of 10 countries will be enabled to begin with — Singapore, Australia, Canada, Hong Kong, Oman, Qatar, the United States of America, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and the United Kingdom. Talks with the UAE are at an advanced stage.
These NRI accounts will be permitted to onboard and transact in UPI, provided the member banks ensure such accounts are only allowed as per the extant FEMA regulations and they adhere to the guidelines issued by the Reserve Bank of India.
According to a report by PwC India, The Indian Payments Handbook – 2022-27, UPI transactions are expected to reach a milestone of 1 billion transactions per day by 2026-27. The report stated that UPI is projected to dominate the retail digital payments landscape, accounting for 90 percent of the total transaction volume over the next five years.
(With inputs from agencies)
