India is eyeing a UPI expansion into Africa

India is at the forefront of a global mission to empower developing nations by extending its influence in the realm of payment technology.

With a focus on advancing financial inclusivity and fostering economic growth, India is taking significant strides towards Africa, engaging in discussions with several African countries, including Namibia, Mozambique, and Kenya, to foster the development of its Unified Payment Interface (UPI) and establish commercial partnerships with payment platforms.

Developed by the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI), the UPI is a versatile mobile payment system that enables seamless transactions between multiple bank accounts. It facilitates various transactions, including inter-bank peer-to-peer (P2P) and person-to-merchant (P2M) transactions, over-the-counter and barcode payments, as well as recurring payments such as utility bills and school fees. Since its inception, UPI has greatly simplified financial transactions for account holders.

Currently, UPI boasts approximately 300 million users and 500 million merchants in India. It has become the preferred method for online transactions in the country, with over 10 billion monthly transactions and $180 billion in transaction volume in August, as reported by the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI).

India’s UPI monthly transaction volume reached 10 billion in July 2023

India’s digital payment landscape witnessed a groundbreaking development as the Unified Payments Interface (UPI) achieved an extraordinary surge in monthly transaction volumes soaring close to 10 billion in July 2023. Driven by the government’s initiatives to drive a cashless economy, the rise of…

TechloyEmmanuel Oyedeji

This proposed expansion of UPI technology into Africa holds promise as it addresses existing challenges in the continent's financial payment landscape. This initiative is poised to drive financial inclusion, support rural economies, foster fintech innovation, and promote transparency among other things.

This isn't the first time India has proposed its payment interface to other countries, over the past years, India has marketed its signature UPI platform to a number of developing countries, with recent Memoranda of Understanding (MoUs) signed with nations like Antigua and Barbuda, Armenia, Sierra Leone, and Suriname to share its Digital Payment Infrastructure (DPI) solutions.

Also, discussions are ongoing with several other developing countries in Latin America, Europe, and Southeast Asia for similar DPI partnerships.

Notably, India's neighbouring countries, including Nepal and Bhutan, have already adopted UPI, and Sri Lanka is expected to follow suit soon. Additionally, India has forged closer financial ties with Singapore, facilitating smoother remittance flows between the two nations by linking their payment systems.