It was the year 2016 when India introduced UPI payments. The United payment interface paved the way for an immaculate methodology of transferring money fearlessly across the nation. We all know that the progress India has made in this area of digital payments has led to a transformation worldwide, mainly because of two very impactful reasons. One, the scale at which the Indian banking sector has made this successful, and second, the ease and the reach of the payment system itself.
The story of how UPI came into existence is rather intriguing. The work behind the scenes for the digital payment interface rather started much earlier than 2016. It was in 2012 when RBI published its paper on its vision for payment system in India, “Payment Systems in India: Vision 2012-15”. The areas of interest mentioned in the paper are those we all know about – accessibility, acceptability, affordability, etc.
Later in 2013, the work to establish such a network started in the background. 12 banks volunteered to be part of it. The target was to bridge the gap across various banks with a simple-to-use mechanism that does not take time to adapt. A decade earlier hardly anyone knew about QR codes or thought mobile numbers were enough to transfer funds. All of this was possible because of relentless efforts put into making the UPI payment system to be effective in both urban and rural areas alike.
The next challenge is the language of the interface. Translations are common in mobile apps, but not everyone in rural areas can read and write. That is when a simple yet effective idea of adding speakers came in. The speaker can be configured to translate the transaction into the user’s preferred language. This simple idea has changed the acceptance rate in rural areas. Nowadays we just see digital payments in every nook and corner of India.
This change in India’s payment system was a game-changer for many. From small businesses to huge conglomerates everyone accepted it. The first trial run for the payments was by Reliance outlets where 200 UPI interfaces were installed in the span of 3 days across Mumbai. India never looked back after that. Now, every transaction is accounted for. Every rupee we spend is accounted for. Every Indian feels empowered.
This was possible only because someone thought of disrupting the idea of paying by cash altogether, that too in a massive nation like India where millions of transactions happen in a day. A variety of businesses bloomed only because of the ease of payments via UPI. Otherwise, in earlier days, one had to add the account number, wait for some time, and could transfer only a limited amount on the first day. Carrying cash was risky. We have left behind all that. UPI has transformed the retail payment structure in India.
Let me tell you what I feel when I travel outside of India. I feel we have progressed by a huge leap. The pride of being a citizen of the country that introduced UPI brings a smile. We as Indians have changed how we think about money transactions in general. We created an ecosystem for fintech players and the global economic footprint must follow it. India and the people of India have hit the reset button of our economic progress.
Candles Online 
Aastha! Whoa! You’ve crafted an outstanding article on India’s UPI payment evolution. I didn’t know much about it until today. Your in-depth research, and history behind UPI showcase a thorough understanding the whole process – from conception till implementation. Real-world examples bring the transformation to life, instilling pride in India’s financial progress. And you explained it amazingly. It was very informative and also inspiring, reflecting a well-crafted narrative.
I am so happy as this is the second article after such a long gap. Keep writing such informative articles. Great job!
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