Mumbai: Google India Digital Services and NPCI International Payments (NIPL), a wholly-owned subsidiary of the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to enable UPI transactions outside India.
The MoU seeks to broaden the use of UPI payments for Indian travellers to make transactions abroad. It also aims to establish UPI-like digital payment systems in other countries, providing a model for seamless financial transactions. Lastly, it will focus on easing the process of remittances between countries by utilizing the UPI infrastructure.
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According to NPCI, the MoU will accelerate UPI’s global acceptance, providing foreign merchants access to Indian customers who will no longer have to rely only on foreign currency or credit or forex cards. They can make digital payments and use UPI-powered apps from India, including Google Pay (GPay). This aligns with NPCI’s agenda of improving India’s position in global digital payments. Moreover, the MoU will also significantly contribute to simplifying remittances by reducing dependence on conventional money transfer channels.
“UPI has demonstrated to the world the step change that happens in economies with the introduction of interoperable, population-scale digital infrastructure, and each economy that joins such networks will create an impact beyond the sum of parts. We are very excited about the scope of this collaboration,” said Deeksha Kaushal, Director of partnerships at Google Pay India.
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According to Ritesh Shukla, CEO – of NPCI International Payments, the partnership will simplify foreign transactions for Indian travellers and allow NPCI to extend knowledge and expertise in operating a digital payments ecosystem to other countries.
The tie-up announcement comes a day after the RBI governor Shaktikanta Das spoke about having more bilateral agreements with countries to integrate their account-to-account fast payment systems with UPI. Das said that agreements similar to NPCI’s tie up with Singapore’s Paynow will be launched in other countries.
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“We are also excited about enabling a seamless and more connected international remittance network by further expanding UPI’s cross-border interoperability feature. With the success of UPI in a dynamic market like India, we are excited to further our vision to transform the digital payments landscape globally,” said Shukla.
