How UPI access will make digital wallet users' life easier

The initiative aims to incorporate PPIs into the UPI ecosystem to improve interoperability between players

- Anshika Kayastha

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI), on 27 December, allowed full-KYC prepaid payment instrument (PPI) holders to make UPI (Unified Payment Interface) transactions via third-party apps.

So far, UPI payments from and to a PPI could only be made through the PPI issuer's app. On the other hand, payments to and from a bank account could be carried out using the bank's UPI app or any third-party app—a facility that is now being extended to PPI issuers.

A PPI issuer may "facilitate the discovery of its full-KYC PPIs on third-party UPI mobile applications, which, in turn, shall enable such PPIs to be linked to their PSP (payment service provider) handle/s", the central bank notified, adding that such transactions from PPIs, using third-party UPI apps, will be authenticated using UPI credentials.

Mint explains:

What are PPIs?