National Payments Corporation of India launches upgraded version of Unified Payments Interface
18/08/2018
new delhi: The National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) launched the Unified Payments Interface (UPI) 2.0, with features such as overdraft facility, one-time mandate, invoice and signed QR, said a press release issued by NPCI.
The service was launched by Reserve Bank of India (RBI) governor Urjit Patel along with other senior officials from NPCI and the banking industry.
Until now UPI could be linked only to savings bank accounts. In the new version, it can be linked to current accounts as well. The other features offer benefits to both individual customers as well as merchants in terms of enhanced security.
Delivering the presidential address, the governor spoke about the need for ensuring adequate importance to be ascribed to cybersecurity, stating that all efforts need to be channelled to this area and that costs should not be an inhibiting factor to this critical area.
The overdraft facility will enable customers to link their overdraft accounts to the UPI app and transact instantly. All benefits with an overdraft account will be available to users.
Using the one-time mandate, customers can transfer money later by providing commitment at present. Customers can pre-authorise a transaction and pay at a later date. It works seamlessly for merchants as well as for individual users. Mandates can be created and executed instantly. On the date of actual purchase, the amount will be deducted and received by the merchant / individual user. The invoice in the inbox feature will allow customers to check the invoice sent by the merchant prior to making payment. Customers can make the payment after verifying the credentials and checking whether it has come from the right merchant or not.
The signed intent & QR feature will allow customers to check the authenticity of merchants while scanning QR code. It notifies the user with information to ascertain whether the merchant is a verified UPI merchant or not. This provides an additional security to the QR as well as intent. Transactions are processed faster, as app passcode is not required in case of signed intent. It also negates the chances of QR tampering. Customers will be informed in case the receiver is not secured, by way of notifications.
Akhil Handa, head fintech and new business initiatives, Bank of Baroda, said, "The linking of overdraft will help the flow of credit with ease based on transaction history, combined with a one-time mandate can throw up many innovative use cases. Further, the invoice in inbox feature will lead to standardisation of invoices and will offer better checks before committing a payment.
The limit enhancement from Rs 1 lakh to Rs 2 lakh will also offer scope to enhance the ambit of payments that can be made through UPI. However, the standing mandate instruction is much required. Hopefully, the regulator will observe the risk associated and take a call on it."
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