UPI now dominates merchant payments: Are cards becoming less useful?
UPI has become the dominant payment method for merchants in India, significantly outpacing credit and debit card usage. Data from the NPCI shows a massive surge in transaction volumes, signaling a permanent shift in consumer behavior toward digital, mobile-first payments.
Why it matters
The rapid adoption of UPI illustrates the success of India's digital public infrastructure and its disruptive impact on traditional banking and payment card industries.
Walk into almost any shop in India today, a kirana store, a pharmacy, a roadside food cart and you'll see the same thing.A small QR code taped near the counter, and a shopkeeper who barely looks up when you scan it. Nobody asks “cash or card" anymore.That everyday habit, repeated billions of times a month, tells you most of what you need to know about where India's payments market is headed.The numbers now confirm what that scene suggests. UPI hasn't just become popular. It has quietly taken over the checkout counter, at the direct expense of cards.How big has UPI actually gottenIn August, UPI processed a record 24.51 billion transactions worth Rs 29.82 lakh crore, according to data released by the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI).
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