India And France Explore Digital Payment Integration: UPI-Lyra Linkage Likely To Be Launched By PM Modi In Paris

Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to France is set to be a significant milestone in the bilateral relationship between the two countries.

While the focus of the two-day visit will be on defence cooperation, India and France are also expected to strengthen their ties in other sectors such as the digital economy, manufacturing, and clean energy.

During the visit, India and France are scheduled to discuss the potential launch of the digital payment technology Unified Payments Interface (UPI) in France.

This move is similar to the India-Singapore fast payment linkage and aims to enhance digital payment systems between the two countries.

Earlier this year, India's UPI and Singapore's PayNow signed an agreement that allowed users in both countries to make cross-border transactions.

This UPI-PayNow integration enabled users to send money quickly, securely, and affordably through their respective mobile apps.

It is possible to send or receive money from India using only a UPI-id, cellphone number, or Virtual Payment Address for money held in bank accounts or e-wallets (VPA).

According to reports, if all agreements are finalised in time, the linkage will be inaugurated by PM Modi at a renowned location in Paris.

In 2022, the National Payments Corporation of India's (NPCI) international arm entered into a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Lyra Network of France, aiming to facilitate the acceptance of UPI and RuPay in the country.

"The whole world is watching that India is doing 5.5 billion UPI transactions in a month. This is a big achievement for India. Today's MoU with France is a big step towards the world," Union Communication minister Ashwini Vaishnaw had said following the signing of the deal, reports Business Today.

Several countries, including UAE, Bhutan, and Nepal, have already implemented India's UPI payment system. The NPCI international is currently in discussions to expand UPI services to the US, European countries, and West Asia.

According to the Reserve Bank of India's annual report released on 30 May and data from the NPCI, the aggregate UPI transactions totalled Rs 139.2 trillion in FY23.

Since its launch in 2016, the UPI platform has accounted for 73 per cent of all non-cash retail payments in India up until March this year.

A recent report by PwC predicts that UPI transactions will continue to grow steadily, reaching 1 billion per day by 2026-27. This would account for 90 per cent of the retail digital payments in the country.