India- Singapore UPI-PayNow Linkage

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• India’s payment system Unified Payments Interface (UPI) and its equivalent network in Singapore called PayNow, were integrated to enable faster remittances between the two countries at a competitive rate.

UPI and Paynow

• UPI is India’s mobile-based fast payment system, which facilitates customers to make round-the-clock payments instantly, using a Virtual Payment Address (VPA) created by the customer. 
• UPI supports both Person-to-Person (P2P) and Person-to-Merchant (P2M) payments and it also enables a user to send or receive money.
• PayNow is a fast payment system in Singapore. It enables peer-to-peer funds transfer service, available to retail customers through participating banks and Non-Bank Financial Institutions (NFIs). 

Significance of the linking Payment Systems

• Cross-border retail payments are generally less transparent and more expensive than domestic transactions. The UPI-PayNow linkage is a significant milestone in the development of infrastructure for cross-border payments and aligns with the G20’s financial inclusion priorities of cross-border payments.
• The UPI-PayNow linkage will enable users of the two fast payment systems to make transactions without a need to get on board the other payment system.
• It will also help the Indian diaspora in Singapore, especially migrant workers and students, through the instantaneous and low-cost transfer of money.

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