Users will no longer have to worry about the complexity of opening applications or the need for an internet connection to make payments. The National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) has introduced two new tools to simplify the use of the Unified Payments Interface (UPI): Tap and Pay and MyUPI.
The Tap and Pay feature allows payments to be made simply by tapping a phone with NFC support on a POS terminal. Meanwhile, MyUPI is designed to consolidate all information related to UPI and provide customer support in one place.
NPCI launched the 'Tap and Pay' feature in UPI on September 10th. To use it, an NFC-enabled smartphone is required. The user needs to unlock their phone and touch it to a compatible POS terminal. It is important to note that mobile internet is not required for this payment; the transaction will be processed using the POS terminal's internet connection.
This means that the payment will not be interrupted even if the store lacks data access on the phone. However, this does not mean that UPI will work completely offline everywhere; Tap and Pay requires NFC support on both the phone and the terminal, and the POS terminal itself must be connected to the internet to complete the payment.
Another feature of Tap and Pay relates to small amounts. Payments up to ₹5000 can be made without entering a UPI PIN. This will help save time in small shops and reduce the need for repeated PIN entry. If the amount exceeds ₹5000, entering the UPI PIN remains mandatory. This feature will support various types of accounts linked to UPI, including RuPay credit cards, allowing daily small purchases to resemble contactless card payment: take out the phone, unlock, tap the POS terminal—and the payment goes through.
Alongside Tap and Pay, NPCI also introduced the MyUPI feature. This is an AI-powered customer support platform developed based on NPCI's small language model, FiMI. Its goal is to make various information related to UPI accessible in one place. Previously, obtaining information about a transaction or an AutoPay mandate required contacting different banks or UPI applications. MyUPI aims to simplify this process by providing users with details about UPI transactions and AutoPay mandates in a single window, thereby reducing the need to constantly open different applications.
MyUPI will not be limited to just displaying information. It will also provide additional information about the recipient before the payment is completed. This helps the user get a more complete picture of the counterparty before sending funds and reduces the risk of erroneous payments. Furthermore, automated chargeback processing will be supported in relevant transactions. The transaction playback function will allow re-executing an old operation.
The new update focuses not only on convenience but also on enhancing security. With the Safety Switch feature, users can request the rejection of suspicious UPI debit transactions. This control can be useful if a user suspects their account has been compromised. Additionally, through the UPI Number Delink feature, users can disable the ability to receive UPI payments via their mobile number, giving the user greater control over UPI usage.
According to NPCI, MyUPI will function as a layer of trust and control, offering 24/7 multilingual assistance and self-service options. This means that the user will need to contact the bank or application support less often for any UPI-related question or issue.