The messenger WhatsApp introduced a new bill payment feature in India, which became available to users on Thursday. This feature allows users to find, manage, and pay bills for household needs and utilities directly within the application. The service operates based on the Bharat Connect network (Bharat bill payment system).
Users will be able to settle bills across various categories, including electricity, gas, water, FASTag, insurance, as well as credit card and loan payments. The system provides access to 22,722 payment agents covering 30 categories.
The launch of WhatsApp's bill payment feature in India comes against the backdrop of the company already being integrated into India's fast payment system—the Unified Payments Interface (UPI), which further strengthens its position in the local market. In India, which is the largest market for the messenger, over 850 million users are registered.
Arun Srinivasan, Managing Director and Country Head at Meta (India), noted that for millions of Indians, WhatsApp is already the simplest way to stay connected with family and friends, communicate with businesses, and receive government services, buying everything from metro tickets to insurance without leaving the app. He added that with the launch of bill payments, they aim to make the bill payment process in WhatsApp as simple as sending a message, and to promote the spread of digital payment convenience in the remotest corners of the country.
For online payments, users can use methods such as UPI, as well as credit and debit cards. The company reported that the service is being rolled out gradually, with full availability expected on iOS and Android platforms in the coming weeks.
In July, WhatsApp processed 167.89 million transactions worth ₹12,957.07 crore, more than double the volume of the previous year. Thanks to this, WhatsApp became the eighth largest UPI application by transaction volume, surpassing players like Cred and Amazon Pay. In July 2025, it processed 74.6 million transactions worth ₹5,412.58 crore, ranking 11th among UPI applications.
WhatsApp Pay first reached the milestone of 100 million transactions in December 2025. The growth in payment volumes in the messenger occurred approximately 19 months after the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) lifted restrictions on connecting WhatsApp Pay users in December 2024. NPCI initially approved WhatsApp in November 2020 to operate in the UPI system under a phased multi-bank model, initially allowing the connection of 20 million users. This limit was increased to 40 million in 2021, and then to 100 million in 2022. In 2024, restrictions on the number of users WhatsApp could connect were completely lifted.