As the use of smartphones increased, people preferred digital transactions over the traditional model of physical payments in India. Again, the COVID-19 pandemic played a considerable role in the rise and fame of online payments. Since the concept of “Cashless Transaction” took a toll, NPCI or National Payments Corporation of India developed UPI or Unified Payments Interface.
Although has been in use since 2016, after the massive demonetisation issue, 2020 marked the new era of online transactions. Various new UPI app offers were developed by companies like Google Pay, PhonePe, PayTM, Amazon Pay, WhatsApp Pay, Airtel Pay, etc. All these apps and their user experience helped uplift the nation’s idea of online payments.
Let us take a deeper look into what UPI is and the reasons behind its never-ending fame in India.
What is UPI?
Initially developed and introduced by NPCI, UPI or Unified Payments Interface is an online platform that mainly looks after online transactions between two different or similar banks through account numbers, mobile numbers or QR codes. Since various apps facilitate the usage of , users can use just one app to do all the things. Apart from transferring money, users can also pay bills, recharge phone numbers, shop online, book train and flight tickets and do much more with . The best part about using UPI payment app is that it is safe and encrypted throughout, hence its popularity. With , cashless payment has been made easy.
Why is Becoming Famous
has gained popularity in the past few years as its use increased exponentially. The easy-to-use user interface and the system are the primary reasons behind its popularity. Moreover, a single user can link multiple bank accounts within a single app for complete access to their finances. Either way, the amount is directly debited from the allowed bank account without any use of cards. facilitates using VPA or Virtual Payment Address that uniquely detects the bank account for transfer. This ensures the safety through two-factor authentication and merchant verification. Apart from making payments, the other uses also make payment apps so popular.
Primary Features of a App
Here are some of the key features of a app. These attractive features have helped gain considerable fame among Indian users.
- Transfer and request money from other users through VPA.
- Facilitating safe online transactions through two-factor authentication and merchant verification.
- One can use the app for transferring money round the clock and round the year.
- All UPI apps are available on all the app stores.
- Linking your bank accounts with the UPI ensures safe and swift payments.
- There is no need to provide bank details every time you make a payment, thus making the user experience hassle-free.
- User authentication is quickly done through e-KYC.
Steps to Create a UPI ID
If you are a new user, here are the detailed steps of how you can create your ID.
- Download any UPI app on your mobile from the app store.
- Open the app and enter your mobile number for linking your bank account. You will receive an OTP (One Time Password) to complete this step.
- Enter the OTP and let the app verify it before moving on to the next step.
- Setup a unique UPI pin and select the “Add Bank Account” option. Ensure that you keep this UPI pin safe at all times.
- Choose the required bank account and enter the UPI pin to authenticate the linkage.
- Verify through the e-KYC process and activate the UPI ID.
- Once your ID is activated, you can start with online transactions.
Common UPI Apps and Developers
Here is a list of some of the common apps used by millions and their developers.
- Google Pay developed by Google
- PayTM developed by One97 Communications Ltd.
- PhonePe developed by PhonePe
- Amazon Pay developed by Amazon Pay LLC
- BHIM UPI developed by NPCI
Wrapping Up
UPI was developed to make India cashless, and it is quite on its path to fulfilling that objective. UPI apps offer many benefits, including cashback, rewards and more. Hence the popularity of UPI apps is ever-growing. With the immense demand, more and more companies are developing user-friendly UPI apps.
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