The Union Finance Ministry on Wednesday dismissed reviews suggesting the federal government is contemplating levying prices on Unified Funds Interface (UPI) transactions, calling the claims “utterly false, baseless, and deceptive.”
In an official put up on social media platform X, the ministry clarified that there is no such thing as a proposal to introduce a Service provider Low cost Price (MDR) on UPI funds. It added that such hypothesis creates unwarranted confusion amongst customers and companies at a time when digital adoption is rising throughout the nation.
“Such baseless and sensation-creating speculations trigger useless uncertainty, concern and suspicion amongst our residents,” the ministry stated. “The Authorities stays totally dedicated to selling digital funds through UPI.”
The clarification is available in response to a current media report that claimed the Centre was weighing the choice of imposing MDR on high-value UPI transactions, particularly these exceeding Rs. 3,000. The report recommended that the coverage, if applied, would intention to cowl rising infrastructure and operational prices incurred by banks and fee service suppliers as a result of surge in giant digital funds.
The report additionally talked about that the Funds Council of India had proposed a 0.3 per cent MDR for giant retailers accepting UPI funds. It claimed that discussions have been underway with stakeholders, together with the Nationwide Funds Company of India (NPCI), and {that a} closing choice might be taken within the coming months. Nevertheless, no official affirmation on such deliberations has been issued by the federal government or regulatory authorities.
UPI, which at the moment facilitates practically 80 per cent of India’s retail digital transactions, stays a cornerstone of the nation’s cashless financial system push. Because the launch of the zero-MDR coverage in January 2020, digital funds through UPI have seen exponential development. The overall worth of person-to-merchant transactions via UPI has crossed Rs. 60 lakh crore since 2020, reflecting its deep integration into each day commerce.
Banks and fintech gamers have beforehand raised considerations over the rising price burden of high-frequency, zero-cost transactions. Nonetheless, the federal government’s place stays unchanged in favour of sustaining a free-to-use system to assist wider monetary inclusion and digital transformation.
With this clarification, UPI transactions will proceed with none further prices for shoppers or retailers, reinforcing the federal government’s deal with fostering a safe, accessible, and reasonably priced digital funds ecosystem.
