Unified Payments Interface (UPI) Launch
The Unified Payments Interface (UPI), developed by the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI), was launched in April 2016. It introduced instant, interoperable bank-to-bank digital payments through a single mobile interface, fundamentally transforming India's payment ecosystem. Today it is the world's largest real-time payment system and serves as the backbone of India's digital economy.
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Timeline
11 April 2016
UPI launched
NPCI officially launched the Unified Payments Interface.
30 December 2016
BHIM launched
Government launched the BHIM app to accelerate UPI adoption.
28 August 2018
Google pay launched
Google Pay was originally launched in India as Tez on September 18, 2017, before being officially rebranded to Google Pay.
16 October 2019
1 billion monthly transactions
UPI crossed one billion monthly transactions.
1 July 2025
Internation Expansion
Continued global expansion and record transactiton values.
25 August 2026
Record growth over a decade
24,000+ crore UPI transactions in FY 2025-26, 188% average annual growth