UPI Records Surge in October with ₹23.5 Lakh Crore Transactions – A New Milestone in Digital Payments
According to the NPCI, UPI transactions witnessed an all-time peak of ₹23.5 lakh crore in October 2024 in India, 14% up over its value and 10% up in terms of increase in transaction volume from September 2024 on comparable value. This was continuous spiking in India concerning digital payments adoption ahead of festive seasons.
India's UPI is one of the world's most widely adopted payment systems, and it has been breaking new records in digital payments. In October alone, 16.58 billion UPI transactions were recorded, underlining the platform's popularity among users for its convenience and speed. Launched in April 2016, UPI has grown significantly, marking this as the highest transaction value since its inception.
Daily UPI Transactions Surge in October
As per NPCI data, UPI had registered a number of up to 535 million average daily transactions with an average value of ₹75,801 crore in October.
The average daily number of transactions was reported to stand at 501 million reported in September, with a daily average value of ₹68,800 crore
As evident from the chart above, it is certain that UPI digital payment has been accepted as a highly adopted mode of digital payments as more people use it for making all their ordinary payments.
Transactions in IMPS, Fastag and AEPS Grow
The Immediate Payment Service (IMPS) was also growing at a pace in October with 467 million transactions, a rise of 9% as compared to September at 430 million. IMPS transaction value rose 11% to ₹6.29 lakh crore, whereas in September, the amount was ₹5.65 lakh crore, meaning there is a strong indication that IMPS has really stepped up to enable immediate transfer.
Fastag's digital payment system registered 8% growth in transactions during the month as October posted 345 million transactions as against 318 million transactions in September. The transaction value for Fastag also registered a growth at ₹6,115 crore in October from ₹5,620 crore in September, signaling a trend that digital payments are gaining space in the toll collection landscape.
Further, AEPS transactions have increased by 26%. In October, 126 million transactions took place compared with 100 million in September. AEPS is the largest driver for financial inclusion across rural India as it has enabled a user to do a transaction using Aadhaar authentication.
Growing Role of UPI in India's Digital Payment Landscape
The last one year has also witnessed rapid growth in transactions done through UPI. RBI's figures for the first half of FY2024, or April-September, saw the volume of transactions under UPI go up by 52% compared with a year ago, to 78.97 billion. Meanwhile, during the same period, the transaction value rose by 40%, increasing to ₹116.63 lakh crore from ₹83.16 lakh crore a year ago.
The digital payment scenario in India is gradually taking shape, and at its forefront is UPI. According to NPCI, digital transactions have picked up pace to 40-48% of consumer spending against 14-19% in March 2021. This shows that India has taken a big leap forward toward a cashless economy with UPI on the front line.
Indian digital payments ecosystem will be able to reach new heights with seamless, secure, and high-volume transactions that the world will look at in awe, as the popularity of UPI and other digital payment systems gain more momentum.
