NEW DELHI: Indian instant payment system Unified Payments Interface (UPI) saw a 52% year-on-year rise in transaction volumes, reaching 78.97 billion in the first half of 2024, according to a report.
In its India Digital Payments Report for the first half of 2024 (January to June), payment technology service provider Worldline revealed that UPI continues to dominate the payment market and is expanding its reach rapidly.
"The number of UPI transactions rose significantly from 8.03 billion in January 2023 to 13.9 billion by June 2024. This growth in volume was matched by an increase in transaction value, which climbed from ₹12.98 trillion in January 2023 to an impressive ₹20.07 trillion in June 2024."
When comparing H1 2024 to the same period in 2023, UPI transaction volumes surged 52%, from 51.9 billion to 78.97 billion, according to the report. The value of these transactions grew 40%, increasing from ₹83.16 trillion to ₹116.63 trillion.
In terms of both volume and value, PhonePe emerged as the top UPI app, followed by Google Pay and Paytm. However, the average ticket size (ATS) of UPI transactions saw an 8% decline. The average ticket size in H1 2023 was ₹1,603, dropping to ₹1,478 in H1 2024.
ATS comprises person-to-person (P2P) and person-to-merchant (P2M) transactions. P2P transactions recorded a slight increase in ATS, rising from ₹2,812 to ₹2,836. Meanwhile, ATS for P2M transactions saw a 4% reduction, falling from ₹667 to ₹643.
"This significant rise in UPI transactions, particularly in the person-to-merchant (P2M) segment, further cements its position as the preferred method for micro-transactions, demonstrating long-term sustainability and even movement to larger transactions in the coming years," Worldline India CEO Ramesh Narasimhan said.
In-store merchant categories such as grocery stores, restaurants, service stations, clothing stores, government services, pharmacies, and hospitals accounted for nearly 53% of the overall transaction value and 68% of the transaction volume during H1 2024.
In the online sector, e-commerce, gaming, utilities, government services, and financial services comprised around 81% of the total transaction volume and 74% of the transaction value.
Additionally, the report noted a 17% increase in the number of POS (point of sale) terminals, rising from 7.65 million in January 2023 to 8.96 million by June 2024.