India’s digital payments development skyrocketed as India stepped into the unlock phase right after a strict nationwide lockdown in the initial quarter of the existing fiscal year 2020-21. During the fiscal’s second quarter, UPI payments recorded an 82 per cent jump in volume and a 99 per cent jump in worth, compared with the similar quarter final year, according to the Worldline India Digital Payments report. In September 2020, UPI clocked more than 180 crore transactions in volume and breached Rs 3 lakh crore in terms of worth.
In Q2, 19 banks joined the UPI ecosystem, bringing the total quantity of banks offering UPI solutions to 174 as of September 2020 when NPCI’s BHIM App was obtainable for prospects of 146 banks. The quantity of BHIM app downloads stood more than 15.8 crores as of 13 October 2020, the report added.
It is to be noted that NPCI has not too long ago provided approval to WhatsApp to go reside with UPI in a graded manner, beginning with a maximum registered user base of 2 crores. Also, it has issued a cap of 30 per cent of the total volume of transactions processed in UPI, which is applicable to all Third-Party App Providers (TPAPs) and will be effective from 1 January 2021.
In the previous couple of weeks, the Reserve Bank of India has announced various initiatives to improve the digital payments space in India. “These initiatives are being welcomed by industry players as it is expected to leverage technology, spur innovation, enhance system efficiency, and strengthen the acceptance infrastructure,” mentioned Deepak Chandnani, Managing Director, Worldline South Asia & Middle East. While contactless, faceless, and cashless transactions are becoming the preferred option amongst buyers and merchants, it is essential to note that this trend began pre-covid and is now accelerating, Chandnani added.
Meanwhile, in the quarter ending-September 2020, there had been more than 51.8 lakhs POS terminals deployed by merchant acquiring banks, which is 13 per cent larger than the similar quarter of the preceding year. Among these, private sector banks represent about 69 per cent of the POS terminal market place when public sector banks account for 26 per cent. Payments banks accounted for 4 per cent of market place share and foreign banks represent the rest 1 per cent.