PremiumMUMBAI: NPCI International Payments Ltd, the international arm of National Payments Corp. of India (NPCI), has partnered with the Royal Monetary Authority (RMA) of Bhutan to implement QR-based unified payments interface (UPI) payments in Bhutan.
The Royal Monetary Authority of Bhutan is the central bank of Bhutan and was established under the Royal Monetary Authority of Bhutan Act of 1982.
The launch of BHIM UPI in Bhutan will add a new milestone in financial integration between the two economies, a statement said on Tuesday. The collaboration between NIPL and RMA will enable acceptance of Unified Payments Interface (UPI) powered BHIM App in Bhutan. RMA will ensure that the participating NPCI mobile application through UPI QR transactions is accepted at all RMA acquired merchants in Bhutan.
The launch, it said, will benefit more than 200,000 tourists from India who travel to Bhutan each year. With this launch, Bhutan will become the first country to adopt UPI standards for its QR deployment and the only country to both issue and accept RuPay cards as well as accept BHIM UPI.
Unified Payments Interface (UPI) is an instant real-time payment system, allowing users to transfer money on a real-time basis, across multiple bank accounts without revealing details of one’s bank account to the other party. In 2020, UPI enabled business worth $457 billion, which is equivalent to approximately 15% of India’s gross domestic product (GDP).
“Our vision has always been focused on taking our robust and popular payments solutions to global markets", said Ritesh Shukla, chief executive, NPCI International Payments Ltd.
The service will be formally launched by finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Tuesday at a virtual ceremony in the presence of Bhutan finance minister lyonpo Namgay Tshering, governor of Royal Monetary Authority of Bhutan Dasho Penjore, Department of Financial Services secretary Debasish Panda, ambassador of Bhutan to India General V Namgyel, ambassador of India to Bhutan Ruchira Kamboj, NPCI chief executive Dilip Asbe and other guests.
