India’s Unified Payments Interface (UPI) on Monday witnessed a significant cross border leap aligning with India’s ‘Neighbourhood First’ policy, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi along with the President of Sri Lanka Ranil Wickremesinghe and Prime Minister of Mauritius Pravind Jugnauth jointly inaugurating the launch of the UPI services in Sri Lanka and Mauritius as well as RuPay card services in Mauritius via video conferencing. The will benefit a wide cross-section of people through a faster and seamless digital transaction experience and enhance digital connectivity between the countries.
The initiative, aimed to disseminate the largescale benefits of digital public infrastructure – as currently being experienced in India — in Sri Lanka and Mauritius marks a special day for three neighbours with their historic connections take the form of modern digital connect. The fintech connectivity will further strengthen cross-border transactions and connections. “India’s UPI or United Payments Interface comes in a new role today – Uniting Partners with India. Our maritime vision is SAGAR i.e. security and growth for all in the region. India does not see its development separately from its neighbours,” Modi emphasised, referring to the commitment of strengthening financial connectivity in the India-Sri Lanka Vision Document. This was figured in discussions with Prime Minister Pravind Jugnauth during the G20 Summit.
The launch will enable the availability of UPI settlement services for Indian nationals travelling to Sri Lanka and Mauritius as well as for Mauritian nationals travelling to India. The extension of RuPay card services in Mauritius will enable Mauritian banks to issue cards based on RuPay mechanism in Mauritius and facilitate usage of RuPay Card for settlements in India and Mauritius.
India is optimistic that connection with UPI will benefit Sri Lanka and Mauritius and digital transformation will get a boost, local economies will witness positive change and tourism will be promoted. Modi also hopes Indian tourists will give priority to destinations with UPI and that people of Indian origin living in Sri Lanka and Mauritius and students studying there will also get special benefits from it. The RuPay card services in Mauritius follows its launch in Nepal, Bhutan, Singapore and UAE, cutting across Asia and Africa. This will also facilitate people coming to India from Mauritius as the need to buy hard currency will also be reduced. The UPI and RuPay card system will further enable real-time, cost-effective and convenient payments and this development can pave way for cross-border remittances i.e. person to person (P2P) payment facility. Jugnauth informed that the co-branded Rupay card will be designated as domestic card in Mauritius, greatly facilitating the citizens of both countries.
India has emerged as a leader in Fintech innovation and DPI which has enabled the smallest of vendors in remotest of villages to transact via UPI and make digital payments. Modi highlighted the convenience and speed of UPI transactions as borne out by the 100 billion plus transactions via UPI in 2023 worth Rs 2 lakh crore (Rs 8 trillion in Lankan currency or Rs 1 trillion in Mauritius rupees). The seamless last-mile delivery through GEM Trinity of bank accounts, Aadhar and mobile phones has led to Rs 34 lakh crore or USD 400 billion of transfers into the bank.
