UPI, or Unified Payments Interface, was introduced in India in April 2016. The idea behind this initiative was to create an easy-to-use system for instant bank-to-bank money transfers.
It is the convenience that comes with the UPI system which it has taken India by storm. Let us see the status quo of UPI in India and how Paytm has developed a strong position in the market.
Status quo of UPI payments in India
In just January 2023, the UPI platform processed 803 crore transactions, which amounted to Rs. 12.98 lakh crore, a record-breaking number.
Among this number, a large chunk of transactions was done by users to make payments to merchants, while user-to-user transactions were also popular. With merchants seeing high transaction volumes, the UPI system recorded an uptime of 99.9978%!
Seeing the tremendous growth and the potential to scale even higher heights, RBI Governor Shashikanta Das has proposed the extension of UPI services to foreigners from G20 countries who are travelling to India.
With society slowly becoming cashless and online payment platforms gaining popularity among the younger generation, UPI service providers have a vast growth potential. Paytm has been one of the leading UPI platforms since the services started. Let us see how it stands out from the competition.
How Paytm stands out in the UPI payment landscape
Paytm, at present, is the third largest UPI platform in India. It aims at revolutionising the way online mobile payments are being made in the country. As per the latest report by Paytm, its average monthly transacting users for the quarter to date (average of January and February 2023) stood at 89 million, displaying a 28% YoY growth. Moreover, merchant subscriptions in terms of the number of payment devices stood at 6.4 million in February 2023.
Here are the features of the Paytm app that set it apart from other UPI platforms.
You can make seamless UPI payments by directly linking your bank account. All you need to do is download the Paytm App. You can also use the Paytm Wallet. Transfer money from your account to your Paytm wallet to quickly make payments. You win rewards and cashbacks on your transactions. Use these to avail discounts.
Want to pay your utility bills? You can do it right from the Paytm app. Apart from this, you can make flight, bus, and train ticket bookings directly through the Paytm app and even book a movie ticket quickly.
The Paytm app also allows you to invest in stocks, open a demat account, and search for the top stocks that are trending currently! Moreover, you can also buy insurance, pay your education fees, clear your credit card bills, check your credit score, play games, recharge your metro card, and even pay your challans. All in one app.
After RBI launched UPI Lite in September 2022 to make low-value transfers easier and faster, Paytm introduced the UPI Lite feature on its app. Through this, users can carry out transactions worth up to Rs. 200, with a cumulative limit of Rs. 4000 daily.
All the features make Paytm one of the most popular UPI platforms in the country.
The bottom line
As reliance on cash is rapidly decreasing, the UPI ecosystem is booming. Latest features and innovations have made it even easier for users to make quick money transfers. Paytm, being one of the leading UPI platforms, offers a large number of benefits to its users, making it stand out from the competition.