India’s UPI Recognised by IMF as the World’s Largest Real-Time Retail Payment System

India’s Unified Payments Interface (UPI) has achieved a historic milestone, with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) acknowledging it as the world’s largest real-time retail payment system. This recognition, featured in the IMF’s June 2025 report “Growing Retail Digital Payments (The Value of Interoperability)”, cements UPI’s position as the dominant force in global digital payments. More than a technological achievement, it represents India’s transformation into a global leader in digital public infrastructure.

Representational image, via Mint and Outlook Business | OpIndia

A Global Leader: UPI’s Unmatched Share in Real-Time Payments

UPI’s rise has been nothing short of extraordinary. Data from ACI Worldwide’s 2024 study, “Prime Time for Real-Time Payments”, shows that UPI handled 129.3 billion digital payments, accounting for 49% of all real-time payments worldwide. No other payment system comes close to this scale. Brazil’s PIX, though rapidly growing, remains at a distant second, while Thailand, China, and South Korea follow even further behind. This massive lead underscores how deeply embedded UPI has become in India’s financial behavior, shaping how everyday transactions take place.

The momentum continues to accelerate. In November 2025 alone, UPI registered over 19 billion transactions, marking a strong year-on-year growth and reflecting its increasing penetration across cities, small towns, and rural regions. UPI is no longer just a digital convenience — it is a national payment backbone facilitating billions of transactions seamlessly every month.

Building the Foundation: Policy, Innovation, and Infrastructure

The meteoric rise of UPI is the outcome of deliberate policy design, continuous innovation, and an expansive digital infrastructure. Led by the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) and supported by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), efforts have been made to ensure that the benefits of digital payments reach every corner of the country. Under the Payments Infrastructure Development Fund (PIDF), India has achieved massive deployment of digital touchpoints in tier-III to tier-VI cities, with over 5.45 crore devices installed for merchant acceptance.

QR code–based payments have been a game changer. By FY 2024–25, more than 56.86 crore QR codes were issued to 6.5 crore merchants, simplifying digital payments even for small vendors. This expansion of low-cost, interoperable infrastructure reflects India’s commitment to making digital transactions accessible to all, regardless of location or socioeconomic background.

UPI’s success also rests on the idea of interoperability. Users can transfer money between any two banks, across dozens of apps, instantly and without fees. This frictionless ecosystem has eliminated barriers, encouraged adoption, and boosted trust in digital payments at an unprecedented scale.

A Transformative Force in India’s Domestic Economy

UPI’s dominance within India is as striking as its global leadership. In FY 2024–25, UPI’s share in the country’s non-cash retail payments ecosystem reached 83.4%, rising sharply from the previous year. More than 185 billion transactions were recorded over the fiscal year, signaling a dramatic shift away from cash dependence.

This surge reflects deeper economic changes. UPI has made digital payments part of everyday life — from micro-businesses and street vendors to large online retailers and government services. It has democratized digital finance, allowing millions of Indians to participate in the formal economy. With the increasing integration of UPI into transport payments, utility bills, e-commerce, and government service delivery, the platform has become indispensable to India’s economic activities.

Why UPI Matters: Inclusion, Convenience, and Transparency

UPI has reshaped the financial landscape by aligning technological innovation with public need. It enhances financial inclusion by enabling even small merchants and consumers in rural areas to transact digitally. Its instant, secure, and zero-cost structure makes it preferable over traditional modes like cash, cards, or net banking. The platform also boosts transparency and reduces leakages by creating auditable, digital trails of payments — an important shift for a growing economy.

UPI’s influence extends beyond payments. It is increasingly integrated with credit services, small business financing, and public sector initiatives. As India’s Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) expands worldwide, UPI becomes a model for other countries aiming to build scalable, inclusive payment ecosystems.

The Road Ahead

While UPI’s success is remarkable, the journey forward requires sustained investment and innovation. Strengthening cybersecurity, expanding rural connectivity, and ensuring healthy competition among payment apps will be crucial. Future growth may also involve deeper integration with small-credit systems, international UPI payments, and cross-border collaborations as more nations express interest in adopting or partnering with India’s UPI model.

The MGMM Outlook

India’s UPI stands today not just as a technological innovation but as a national achievement that showcases how a developing country can lead the world through vision, scale, and inclusivity. The IMF’s acknowledgment of UPI as the world’s largest real-time retail payment system reinforces what India has already proven — that digital public infrastructure can be both expansive and accessible. With nearly half of the world’s real-time transactions flowing through UPI, the system has become deeply woven into the fabric of Indian life, powering everything from street-side purchases to large-scale services. Its interoperability, zero-cost model, and seamless functioning reflect a deliberate design that prioritises empowerment over profit, making digital payments a universal right rather than a privilege.

UPI’s impact goes far beyond statistics; it has transformed how India works, earns, and participates in the formal economy. The widespread deployment of QR codes, the explosion of digital touchpoints in rural towns, and its integration across sectors show how India’s financial behaviour has fundamentally evolved. By enabling transparency, reducing leakages, and opening doors to credit and financial services, UPI has strengthened the economic backbone of millions. As more nations show interest in India’s digital model, UPI is no longer just a domestic success story — it has become a global benchmark. What we see today is the rise of an Indian innovation that has reshaped everyday transactions while illuminating the future path for inclusive digital finance worldwide.

(Sources: OpIndia, Times of India, Economic Times)