Google India Digital Services and NPCI International Payments have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) that will help expand UPI payments to countries beyond India. The move will enable Indian travellers to make payments in other countries via Google Pay (also known as GPay), eliminating the need to carry cash or resort to international payment gateways. The agreement also states that it intends to develop a UPI-like digital payment system in other countries, with the ultimate goal of providing a seamless experience when engaging in financial transactions. Deeksha Kaushal, Director, Partnerships, Google Pay India said, “We are delighted to support NIPL towards expanding the reach of UPI to international markets. Google Pay has been a proud and willing collaborator to NPCI and the financial ecosystem, under the regulator’s guidance, and this collaboration is another step towards our commitment to making payments simple, safe and convenient." Kaushal emphasised that UPI has showcased to the global community the significant transformation that occurs in economies when interoperable, population-scale digital infrastructure is introduced. Every economy that becomes part of such networks will generate an impact greater than the sum of its individual components. The partnership will also focus on making the process of remittances easier between countries by making use of the existing Unified Payments Interface (UPI) infrastructure. This might also help accelerate the growth of UPI as an international payment method and offer foreign sellers access to Indian customers, who are currently limited by foreign currency, credit and forex cards. By increasing UPI's cross-border interoperability, the MoU aims to ease doing business and making payments for Indian travellers as well as people from other countries who are coming to India.
