Unified Payments Interface (UPI) goes global: Cross-border transactions grow 20-fold in a year

Cross-border Unified Payments Interface (UPI) transactions are witnessing rapid growth as the system expands internationally. Volumes surged from just 180 payments in FY22 and 144 in FY23 to 37,060 in FY24, before jumping over 20 times to more than 7,55,000 in FY25. In the first four months of FY26 alone, 6,01,000 transactions were processed. The value of such transactions mirrored this momentum, rising from a negligible Rs. 3,000 (US$ 34.2) in FY22 and Rs. 4,000 (US$ 45.6) in FY23 to Rs. 19.70 crore (US$ 2.2 million) in FY24 and Rs. 258.53 crore (US$ 29.5 million) in FY25. As of July 2025, in FY26, the cross-border UPI value stood at Rs. 169.29 crore (US$ 19.3 million).

The growth is supported by the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) and its international arm, NPCI International Payments Ltd. (NIPL), which is driving global UPI adoption by linking with other countries’ fast payment systems. Currently, UPI is live in seven nations, namely the United Arab Emirates, Nepal, Bhutan, Singapore, Mauritius, France, and Sri Lanka, and is already accepted by more than 1.5 million international merchants. Experts note that the rise in both peer-to-peer and peer-to-merchant transactions demonstrates UPI’s increasing relevance in cross-border payments, marking a significant step towards India’s goal of establishing UPI as a global standard for real-time payments.

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