New Delhi: The Unified Payments Interface (UPI), launched on August 25, 2016, by the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) under the regulatory oversight of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), has completed a decade of transforming digital payments in India.
The Unified Payments Interface has emerged as the backbone of India’s digital payments ecosystem and a critical driver of financial inclusion.
Over the past decade, the Unified Payments Interface has demonstrated extraordinary scale and momentum.
Annual transaction volume increased from 1.78 crore transactions in FY 2016-17 to more than 24,162 crore transactions in FY 2025-26, representing an almost 13,000-fold surge.
At the same time, the transaction value processed through the Unified Payments Interface rose from ₹0.07 lakh crore in FY 2016-17 to approximately ₹314 lakh crore in FY 2025-26. This represents an increase of more than 4,000 times in transaction value over the decade.
The Unified Payments Interface has emerged as one of the most successful pillars of India’s Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI). It provides an interoperable, real-time payments platform that enables seamless peer-to-peer (P2P) and peer-to-merchant (P2M) transactions through a single application.
Today, the Unified Payments Interface is the preferred mode of payment for millions of users and has transformed the way transactions are carried out across India.
By bridging the digital divide, advancing financial inclusion and expanding access to digital financial services, UPI has empowered individuals and communities across the country while driving broad-based economic participation.
The simultaneous expansion in transaction volume and value highlights the growing role of the Unified Payments Interface in supporting high-frequency retail payments.
The scale, reliability and interoperability achieved by UPI have received global recognition, with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) acknowledging it as the world’s largest real-time payment system by transaction volume.
This recognition underscores India’s leadership in building scalable, inclusive and innovative digital public infrastructure.
Decade in Numbers
According to NPCI data, the Unified Payments Interface recorded significant growth across transaction volume, transaction value, participating banks and overall digital payments adoption during its first decade.Key Indicator FY 2016-17 FY 2025-26 Annual Transaction Volume 1.78 crore 24,162 crore Annual Transaction Value ₹0.07 lakh crore ₹314 lakh crore Transaction Volume CAGR — 188% Transaction Value CAGR — 155% YoY Volume Growth — 30% YoY Value Growth — 21%
The Unified Payments Interface processed an average of 66 crore transactions daily in 2026. In July 2026, the platform recorded its highest monthly transaction volume of 2,366 crore transactions, while monthly transaction value reached a record ₹29.88 lakh crore.
The number of banks participating in the Unified Payments Interface ecosystem has also increased substantially. While 21 banks were part of the system at its launch in April 2016, 741 banks were live on UPI as of July 2026.
The first month of operations, August 2016, recorded 90,000 transactions. By FY 2025-26, the Unified Payments Interface accounted for 84% of India’s digital payments, according to the data provided by NPCI.
Globally, UPI accounted for 49% of real-time payment transaction volume in 2025. The platform is currently operational in 11 countries, further expanding the international reach of India’s digital payments infrastructure.
Unified Payments Interface Records Strong Growth in 2026
The year 2026 marked another significant milestone in the growth trajectory of the Unified Payments Interface.
Monthly UPI transaction volumes crossed 2,300 crore for the first time in May 2026, when transactions reached 2,320 crore. The growth momentum continued into July, when the Unified Payments Interface recorded 2,366 crore transactions, marking the highest monthly transaction volume in its decade-long journey.
The July 2026 performance also established a new record for monthly transaction value, which stood at ₹29.88 lakh crore.
The continued increase in transaction volumes reflects the expanding adoption of the Unified Payments Interface across retail payments and everyday transactions.
UPI Ecosystem Expands Across Banks
The Unified Payments Interface has witnessed steady and broad-based expansion in institutional participation since its launch.
The number of banks live on UPI increased from 44 banks in FY 2016-17, the first year of operations, to 703 banks by FY 2025-26. As of July 2026, the number had reached 741 banks.
The onboarding of banks includes public sector banks, private banks, small finance banks, payment banks and cooperative banks. This broad participation has enabled the Unified Payments Interface to establish deep geographic reach across the country.
Each participating bank functions as a Remitter Payment Service Provider (PSP), processing outgoing transactions, and/or as a Beneficiary PSP, receiving funds. NPCI monitors performance metrics for all participants in the ecosystem.
The expansion of participating banks has played an important role in extending the reach of the Unified Payments Interface and supporting financial inclusion across different sections of the country.
UPI: P2P and P2M Transactions
An analysis of Unified Payments Interface transactions highlights a clear difference between transaction volume and transaction value across payment types.
Person-to-merchant (P2M) transactions account for 63% of total transaction volume, reflecting the extensive use of UPI for high-frequency, low-value retail payments.
In contrast, person-to-person (P2P) transactions dominate transaction value, contributing 71%. This indicates their use for higher-ticket transfers between individuals.
The difference between volume and value highlights the dual role of the Unified Payments Interface as a mass retail payments platform as well as a channel for larger-value fund transfers.
The P2M segment demonstrates the extent to which UPI has become integrated into routine retail and day-to-day commerce, while P2P transactions continue to support personal fund transfers.
UPI Sees Strong Micro-Payment Adoption
In FY2026, the Unified Payments Interface recorded 24,162 crore transactions, reflecting its deep integration into everyday digital payment usage across the country.
P2M transactions were largely driven by small-ticket payments. As much as 86% of P2M transactions were below ₹500, highlighting the extensive use of the Unified Payments Interface for routine retail payments and everyday commerce.
P2P transactions also recorded widespread usage for low-value transfers, with 59% of transactions below ₹500. At the same time, 41% of P2P transactions were above ₹500, highlighting the versatility of the Unified Payments Interface in facilitating both regular personal payments and higher-value fund transfers.
The distribution of transactions by ticket size demonstrates the platform’s presence across different categories of digital payments.
UPI Gains Global Recognition
What began as a domestic payments innovation has evolved into a global benchmark in digital payments.
As of 2025, the Unified Payments Interface accounted for nearly 49% of the world’s real-time payment transaction volume, a milestone recognised by the International Monetary Fund.
With more than 66 crore transactions processed daily, the Unified Payments Interface has surpassed global payment networks in real-time transaction volume, reinforcing India’s position as a leader in instant, secure and inclusive digital payments.
The global recognition of UPI reflects the scale and interoperability achieved by India’s digital payments infrastructure.
The Unified Payments Interface has also expanded beyond India and emerged as a platform for cross-border digital payments. It is currently operational in 11 countries.
These countries are the United Arab Emirates, France, Bhutan, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Singapore, Mauritius, Qatar, Cambodia, Greece and Maldives.
The international presence of the Unified Payments Interface marks the expansion of India’s digital payments infrastructure beyond the domestic market and strengthens its role as a global platform for cross-border digital payments.
Unified Payments Interface and India’s Digital Public Infrastructure
The growth of the Unified Payments Interface has been closely linked to the development of India’s Digital Public Infrastructure.
Through its interoperable and real-time architecture, UPI enables peer-to-peer and peer-to-merchant transactions through a single payments platform.
The expansion of the Unified Payments Interface has also supported broader access to digital financial services. Its growing adoption among individuals, merchants and financial institutions has helped strengthen the digital payments ecosystem across the country.
The combination of scale, reliability and interoperability has positioned the Unified Payments Interface as a major component of India’s digital public infrastructure.
Unified Payments Interface: The Road Ahead
The next decade of the Unified Payments Interface is expected to drive further transformation in India’s digital payments landscape.
The Government of India remains committed to bringing new users and merchants into the UPI ecosystem and enabling the next phase of UPI-led innovation.
The continued development of the Unified Payments Interface ecosystem will be supported through policy support, technological advancement and efforts to strengthen financial inclusion.
As UPI enters its next decade, its expansion across users, merchants, banks and geographies is expected to remain central to the evolution of India’s digital payments ecosystem.
