QR-based Unified Payments Interface (UPI) payments will now be accepted in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), NPCI International Payments Limited (NIPL) announced via a press release on Wednesday. To facilitate this move, the organisation is partnering with Network International – a company which enables digital commerce across the Middle East and Africa (MEA) region. Courtesy of this partnership, UPI payments can be made via Network International’s over 2,00,000 point-of-sale (POS) terminals.
UPI Payments in UAE
With this initiative, NIPL says Indian tourists and Non-Resident Indians (NRIs) across the UAE can make secure payments by simply scanning the QR code. It will be accepted across leading establishments such as the Mall of the Emirates, Dubai Mall and other retail stores and dining outlets.
Making the announcement, Ritesh Shukla, CEO of NPCI International, said, “By growing UPI payment acceptance across merchants in the UAE, we are not only providing Indian travellers with a seamless and familiar payment experience, but also promoting the use of innovative digital payment solutions internationally.”
Network International is claimed to support over 60,000 merchants in retail, hospitality, transport, supermarket and other sectors, and cross-border UPI payments can be made using Indian bank accounts in these locations.
UPI is a real-time payment system that enables users to link multiple bank accounts to a mobile app and make payments through it. Launched in 2016, it claims to simplify digital payments while keeping them secure. Users can choose a PIN which is required every time they make a payment by scanning a QR code from the merchant. Alternatively, they can set a maximum limit within which a UPI PIN will not be necessary.
UPI in Other Nations
Nepal was the first nation to support UPI payments outside of India, with its Gateway Payments Service (GPS) partnering with NIPL to facilitate QR-based payments. Earlier this year, Sri Lanka, Mauritius and France became the latest countries to accept UPI payments.
Apart from the UAE, UPI is also available in five other countries, in addition to India: Bhutan, France, Mauritius, Nepal, Singapore, and Sri Lanka.
