PM Modi Virtually Launches India’s UPI Services in Sri Lanka and Mauritius
At a virtual ceremony on Monday afternoon, February 12, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, along with the leaders of Mauritius, Pravind Jugnauth, and Sri Lanka, Ranil Wickremesinghe, officially launched India’s groundbreaking Unified Payment Interface (UPI) services.
With the introduction of the digital payment network, both nations will have access to the convenience of real-time transaction settlement through UPI. Furthermore, Indian nationals visiting the two nations won’t have to depend on other, frequently difficult, payment methods.
“Today is a special day for three friendly countries in the Indian Ocean region. Today we are connecting our historical relations in a modern digital way. This is proof of our commitment to the development of our people,” said PM Modi during the ceremony.
“Through Fintech connectivity, not only cross-border transactions but also cross-border connections will be strengthened. India’s Unified Payments Interface i.e. UPI is now performing a new responsibility – Uniting Partners with India,” he added.
The introduction of RuPay card services in Mauritius would enable local banks to offer cards that use the RuPay system in addition to UPI. In 2012, the Indian government broke up the Visa and Mastercard duopoly by introducing RuPay cards.
Days after the service’s official premiere at Paris, France’s famous Eiffel Tower, UPI is now available in the two countries around the Indian Ocean.
The ground-breaking UPI technology was unveiled by the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) in 2016. Person-to-merchant (P2M) and peer-to-peer (P2P) transactions between banks are made easier by the interface. It allows for the instantaneous transfer of money between two bank accounts using mobile devices.
Among the first platforms to include UPI into their system were PhonePe and PayTM. After a year, other rivals did the same, and ever since, UPI has grown into a massive company that even foreign countries are vying to acquire.
