*Unified Payments interface goes live

*Unified Payments Interface goes live:*

Unified Payments Interface (UPI), which will help move India towards a cashless economy, is all set to go live in next two to three working days with 21 banks. The UPI app will be available on the Google Play Store in next two to three working days for the customers to download and start using for 19 banks - Andhra Bank, Axis Bank, Bank of Maharashtra, Bhartiya Mahila Bank, Canara Bank, Catholic Syrian Bank, DCB Bank, Federal Bank, ICICI Bank, TJSB Sahakari Bank, Oriental Bank of Commerce, Karnataka Bank, UCO Bank, Union Bank of India, United Bank of India, Punjab National Bank, South Indian Bank, Vijaya Bank and YES Bank. IDBI Bank and RBL Bank will be issuers of UPI, which will enable customers to download any UPI enabled Apps mentioned above and link their account.

Unified Payments Interface (UPI) is developed by National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI), the umbrella organisation for all retail payments system in India. According to Bankbazaar' CEO Adhil Shetty, "In the long run, UPI may replace the current NEFT, RTGS, and IMPS systems as they exist today."

This is how new UPI will work for you. A unique UPI ID is created by using your phone number that is linked to your bank account. This ID is just like an ordinary email ID. For example if your mobile number is 123456789 and you have a bank account with the Punjab National Bank, your UPI id may be 123456789@PNB. To send money from any party, all the sender has to do is open the banking app installed in his or her phone, go to 'Send money' section, and facilitate transactions through UPI mode. In the recipient details, the sender needs to add id of the recipient (for example 123456789@PNB). The money gets transferred instantly to the bank account of the recipient once approved by the sender.

Here are 5 things to know about Unified Payments Interface and how it makes customers life easy vis-a-vis payments

1. Since it has been launched keeping cashless transaction, you no longer will have to wait for hourly batches of NEFT to send or get funds or seek Mobile Money Identifier (MMID) code for IMPS transactions anymore

2. As RBI Governor Raghuram Rajan has said during its soft-launch in APril this year, UPI will turn your smartphone into a payment bank. All you need is a smartphone and your banking app to send and receive funds instantly or to make a payment while any retail purchase

3. Presently, sending or receiving money is done through either NEFT, RTGS, or IMPS system, which needs mandatory information of the recipient like bank account details of the recipient, the IFSC code of the bank, bank account number, etc. With UPI, only mobile number of the recipient is required for an instant transfer any time or day of the week using just your Smartphone

4. Shopping becomes less cumbersome even if you are not carrying or credit or debit cards. It allows you send and receive money as well as make use of its integrated payment system to make merchant payments. Transfer of money from your bank account can happen to merchant's account instantly using UPI

5. UPI-based money transactions are available 24/7 including holidays. One can transfer money from India to any other country using UPI by just opening the banking app or UPI app. Once the app is downloaded you need to select the amount to be paid, add the unique id of your beneficiary, and select 'Send'. After a confirmation password on your phone and you approval, funds gets instantly transferred to the recipient’s bank account.