IASNOVA
Unified Payments Interface (UPI)
- is an instant real-time payment system
- developed by National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI)
- facilitating inter-bank peer-to-peer (P2P) and person-to-merchant (P2M) transactions.
- The interface is regulated by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) and works by instantly transferring funds between two bank accounts on a mobile platform.
Unified Payments Interface is a real-time payment system that allows sending or requesting money from one bank account to another. Any UPI client app may be used and multiple bank accounts may be linked to a single app. Money can be sent or requested by using a user-created Virtual Payment Address (VPA) or UPI ID that helps in sending or requesting money from a bank account using the know your customer (KYC) linked mobile number. UPI also generates a specific QR code for each user account for the purpose of contact-less payment.
National Payments Corporation of India
The National Payments Corporation of India is the specialised division of Reserve Bank of India which is under the jurisdiction of Ministry of Finance, Government of India.It was created by RBI for operating retail payments and settlement systems in India.
Founded in December 2008, the NPCI is a not-for-profit organisation registered under Section 8 of the Companies Act 2013, established by the Reserve Bank of India and Indian Banks’ Association. The organisation is owned by a consortium of major banks, and has been promoted by the country’s central bank, the Reserve Bank of India.
UPI Pay123
It a 3-step method to initiate and execute UPI services for feature phone users without the use of internet connection or USSD channel. It is based on Interactive voice response (IVR) technology which is good specially for rural areas. It is launched by RBI on 10 March 2022.
DigiSaathi
It a 24×7 helpline for digital payments. It is launched with UPI Pay123 by RBI on 10 March 2022.
e-RUPI
- developed in collaboration with Department of Financial Services, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare and National Health Authority.
- It was introduced from 2 August 2021.
- e-RUPI is to ensure leak proof delivery of welfare services and bypassing middle man to decrease corruption.
- Private sector can use the service for their own corporate social responsibility initiative (CSR).
- e-RUPI is basically e-voucher based on QR code or SMS string that can be delivered through mobile phone.
- e-RUPI will act as a precursor for future Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) that will be launched by RBI as it will help in highlighting the gaps within the national digital payment infrastructure.
BHIM-UPI
- BHIM (Bharat Interface for Money) is an Indian mobile payment app developed by the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI), based on the Unified Payments Interface (UPI).
- Launched on 30 December 2016, it is intended to facilitate e-payments directly through banks and encourage cashless transactions.
- It can be used on all mobile devices.
BHIM allows users to send or receive money to or from UPI payment addresses, or to non-UPI based accounts (by scanning a QR code with account number and IFS code or MMID code)
Unlike mobile wallets (Paytm, MobiKwik, mPesa, Airtel Money, etc.) which hold money, the BHIM app is only a mechanism which transfers money between different bank accounts. Transactions on BHIM are nearly instantaneous and can be done at any time, including weekends and bank holidays.
BHIM now also allows users to send or receive digital payments through Aadhaar authentication.
