- Three new features have been introduced for UPI and UPI Lite.
- AI-powered conversational payments, and NFC support are coming to UPI.
- The daily transaction limit has also been increased for UPI Lite.
The Reserve Bank of India has announced three new features for UPI (Unified Payments Interface) and UPI Lite. The new features bring Artificial Intelligence (AI), NFC support, and increase in transaction limit. Here’s a detailed look at all the new UPI and UPI Lite features that have been rolled out.
NFC support for offline UPI payments
NFC (Near Field Communication) support for offline payments is coming soon to UPI. This feature will be helpful in situations where there’s poor internet connectivity. Most smartphones these days come with NFC enabled so once the feature is rolled out, it should be available to use by everyone. With NFC phones you can just place the device near the UPI-enabled machine to complete the payment.
UPI Lite limit increased
The RBI has also increased the transaction limit from Rs 200 to Rs 500 in UPI Lite. For those unaware, UPI Lite was launched in September 2022 for small-value transactions. UPI Lite lets you make transactions up to Rs 200 daily without the need of the PIN code. This not only reduces the transaction time but it also helps prevent transaction failures. The transaction limit has now been increased to Rs 500.
You can use UPI Lite on various apps such as Paytm, BHIM, and Google Pay. Several banks including HDFC Bank, Kotak Mahindra Bank, State Bank of India and Canara Bank already support UPI Lite.
AI-powered conversational payments on UPI
The RBI plans on introducing a ‘Conservation Payment’s technology for UPI transactions. The idea behind this feature to let users converse with an AI bot to initiate and complete payments. It should help make UPI transactions easier and faster. This feature will be available on smartphones and feature phones that support UPI. At launch, the AI system will be available in Hindi and English, and in more Indian languages eventually.
