UPI in India Statistics and facts

  • Published Date: 24 Jan 2025


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https://www.npci.org.in/what-we-do/upi/upi-ecosystem-statistics https://www.rbi.org.in/Scripts/EntityWiseRetailStatistics.aspx https://www.business-standard.com/companies/start-ups/singapore-tourism-board-phonepe-sign-mou-to-boost-upi-for-indian-tourists-124040301254_1.html


UPI Ecosystem in India: Key Trends and Future Insights

Recently in India, the Unified Payments Interface (UPI) has reached 16.73 billion transactions spanning from last month to a cumulative value of 23.25 lakh crore by December 2024. This reflected an 8 increase from the previous month's transactions. The topmost applications still holding substantial market shares as of December 2024 are PhonePe and Google Pay, with 47 and 36, respectively. The National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) has extended the deadline for enforcing the 30 market share cap to December 2026, ensuring that these larger players maintain their market share while promoting competition. The NPCI has also postponed the onboarding of WhatsApp to upgrade its UPI user reach from the previous near-saturation point of 100 million users. This is yet another reminder of UPI's unique role as a feature in the dynamic evolution of India's digital economy, with more fintech-centric activity marking its progress.

Current times have witnessed UPI flourishing in both urban and rural sectors, a reality that has made digital payments easier and more distant for all. The government-led initiatives specifically aim at promoting financial inclusion, such as UPI Lite and UPI 123Pay, for the feature phone and low-data environment users. Pairing and initiating UPI across borders with, for instance, Singapore, the UAE, and Bhutan introduced them within the global realm and stressed instant international transactions. When UPI is added to RuPay, credit features can be offered, making the service more flexible than just peer-to-peer (P2P) transactions. This collaborative endeavor engendered by digitalization and the increasingly robust partnerships from startups and banks heaps praises upon UPI, playing its transformative role within India's emergent fintech ecosystem.

The Unified Payments Interface (UPI) of India has appeared to change the way we transact in other countries in the reality of international exchange. Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, and the Philippines are working together to create an instant cross-border payment system by 2026. This is part of a plan to make international transactions run more smoothly. At the end of 2025, projections indicate that monthly transactions will approach five and twenty billion. The innovations with the most promise include enhancements to the payment delegate feature in the growing One World Wallet of the UPI. This framework aims to enhance the user experience by simplifying foreign transactions and enhancing payment management. All these factors demonstrate the significant influence of UPI in shaping the future of digital payments, both within India and beyond its borders.

The latest development discusses UPI card cash transactions' 20% per month increase, rising with RuPay's market share to 12%. The monthly transaction limit for each of these cards, at approximately 40, remains significantly higher than the monthly limit for users of conventional cards. Monthly spending on these cards is approximately 40,000 per user. The average transaction size amounts to about 1,125, suggesting daily purchases are buyers going ahead with starting to use the credit card.

UPI has truly become an enabler in the sphere of digital transactions in India. Giving a meta-style curtain call to the UPI economy, 16.73 billion transactions were costing a staggering ₹23.25 lakh crore by the end of 2024. Leading companies like PhonePe and Google Pay handle the majority of these transactions, holding 47% and 36% of the market share, respectively. UPI has flourished and grown further with the entry of companies like WhatsApp. On the other hand, the government is extending support with incentives to adopt these services in rural areas and among people who have limited Internet access through the services of UPI Lite and UPI 123Pay. UPI is also going global, enticing other countries like Singapore and Bhutan for cross-border payments. UPI, striding simultaneously with RuPay credit cards, is swerving forward with payments and loans coming from the same fintech sector taking shape.

Frequently Asked Questions

In 2024, UPI experienced significant growth, processing 16.73 billion transactions, an increase of 8% in transaction volume from the previous month. The total transaction value reached ₹23.25 lakh crore, reflecting the growing trust and reliance on UPI for digital payments across India.
As of December 2024, PhonePe and Google Pay are the dominant players in the Indian UPI market, holding 47% and 36% market shares respectively. These platforms have played a pivotal role in driving UPI adoption and have become household names in digital payments.
Yes, UPI has expanded its global reach through cross-border collaborations with countries like Singapore, the UAE, and Bhutan, allowing for real-time, low-cost international transactions. These partnerships are set to grow, further enhancing UPI's role in global payments.
The National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) has set a market cap of 30% for UPI platforms, with a deadline extension to December 2026. This move aims to foster competition while allowing dominant platforms like PhonePe and Google Pay to consolidate their positions in the market.