- Date : 06/08/2020
- Read: 2 mins
UPI transactions have been growing steadily since e-commerce businesses and restaurant delivery services have been allowed to resume
Since the staggered re-opening of the economy since May 2020, online payments have started to pick up the pace. With social distancing norms in place, cashless modes of transacting have gained prominence as a means to purchase goods and services in a swift, safe, and contact-free manner.
What do the numbers reveal about UPI transactions?
Data from the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) suggests Unified Payments Interface (UPI) transactions for the month of July touched an all-time high of 149 crore (1.49 billion), with the transaction value pegged at Rs 2.91 lakh crore. This overshadowed the previous high of 134 crore (1.34 billion) transactions in the preceding month of June, with transactions valued at Rs 2.61 lakh crore. The figures for May were pretty encouraging too at 123 crore (1.23 billion) with cumulative transactions valued at Rs 2.13 lakh crore after volumes dipped below the one billion mark in April for the first time since October ’19, thanks to the COVID-19 pandemic.
As a monthly comparison, the number of transactions has scaled up by over 80% for the same period as of last year. In July 2019, the number of UPI transactions was 82.23 crore valued at Rs 1.46 lakh crore.
Related: How Unified Payment Interface (UPI) can change the way you bank
What is the reason behind all-time high UPI transactions?
The government has been pushing for a cashless economy since demonetisation, and the pandemic has fast-tracked the adoption of digital technology. Consumers are leaning towards digital wallets, UPI, banking app, and more to pay and receive money.
Not only have the number of transactions scaled up, but the merchant transaction values have also grown by 50-60% from pre COVID-19 levels. The average transaction value has gone up from Rs 280 to Rs 600 – Rs 700 as e-commerce businesses and restaurant delivery services have been allowed to resume services after the lockdown.
The upward trend for digital payments is expected to continue with social distancing and contact-free methods of transacting becoming the new normal for the foreseeable future. Here's what you must know about this new-age payment mode - UPI.
