Global UPI Access for Indian Travelers: Google India & NPCI International MoU

Indian travelers will soon be able to make seamless UPI transactions worldwide through Google Pay. To achieve this, Google India Digital Services and NPCI International Payments Limited (NIPL) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU).

This MoU aims to enhance the global presence of UPI. Foreign businesses will have access to Indian customers, who currently rely solely on foreign currency, credit, and foreign currency cards for digital payments. Google Pay stated that the three main objectives of this MoU are…

The focus is to expand UPI adoption for Indian expatriates, enabling them to conduct transactions abroad effortlessly. Additionally, NIPL aims to use UPI infrastructure to establish a model for seamless cross-border financial transactions, simplifying remittances between countries.

NIPL’s CEO, Ritesh Shukla, highlighted that the collaboration aims not only to facilitate simple transactions for Indian expatriates but also to share knowledge and expertise to establish successful digital payment systems in other countries.

He stated, “This collaboration will strengthen UPI’s global presence, allowing foreign businesses to reach Indian customers who currently depend only on foreign trends, credit, and foreign credit cards for digital payments.”

Simplifying Payments Globally: NIPL and Google Pay’s Commitment

Diksha Kaushal, Director of Google Pay India Partnership, expressed the commitment to make transactions simple, secure, and convenient. She emphasized their dedication to supporting NIPL in expanding UPI’s reach in the international market.

In December 2023, UPI set a new record with 1.202 billion transactions, amounting to ₹18.22 trillion. This surpassed the previous month’s 1.123 billion transactions, totaling ₹17.397 trillion.

The article explains how UPI functions and highlights the simplicity of the process. Users need to create a virtual payment address for UPI services, link it with their bank account, and then make transactions using only their mobile number.

If users have a UPI ID (email ID, mobile number, or Aadhaar number), they can easily transfer money through their smartphones. UPI not only facilitates utility bill payments, online shopping, and purchases but also serves as a unified payment interface for net banking, credit, and debit card transactions.