Nearly 4 out of 5 digital transactions via UPI, says RBI annual report

Nearly four out of five digital payments in India were conducted via the Unified Payments Interface (UPI) in the financial year 2023-24, according to the Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI) annual report. UPI's share of the total digital payment volume increased from 73.4% in 2022-23 to 79.7% in FY24. In FY20, UPI accounted for 36.8% of all digital payments in India. Over recent years, UPI has emerged as a leading method for digital transactions. The volume of digital payments in FY24 reached 164.4 billion transactions, a 44% year-on-year increase from 113.9 billion transactions in FY23. In FY20, there were 34 billion digital UPI transactions recorded. The report highlighted that the Payments Infrastructure Development Fund (PIDF) has significantly contributed to the growth of digital payments in the past financial year. Under the PIDF scheme, Point of Sale (PoS) terminals, mobile PoS terminals, and interoperable Quick Response (QR) codes have been subsidised. In FY24, the number of PoS terminals rose by 14.3% year-on-year to 8.9 million, while Bharat QR (BQR) codes increased by 16.1% to 6.2 million. UPI QR codes saw a 35% year-on-year increase, reaching 346 million codes by the end of FY24.

On international expansion, the RBI and NPCI International Payments Ltd. (NIPL) aim to introduce UPI in 20 countries, with plans starting in 2024-25 and completing by 2028-29. The RBI also approved 22 online payment aggregators. Meanwhile, debit card transactions have continued to decline, reaching a five-year low. In FY24, there were 2.28 billion debit card transactions, a 33% year-on-year decrease from 3.41 billion transactions in FY23. This figure is nearly half of the 5.06 billion debit card transactions recorded in FY20. Conversely, credit card transactions have risen, with FY24 recording 3.56 billion transactions, a 22% year-on-year increase from 2.9 billion transactions in FY23. This surge in digital payments and the decline in debit card usage indicate a significant shift towards more efficient and convenient payment methods in India.

Disclaimer: This information has been collected through secondary research and IBEF is not responsible for any errors in the same.