UPI transactions volume rises 52% to 78.97 billion in Jan-Jun: Report

Indian instant payment system Unified Payment Interface (UPI) transaction volumes recorded a 52 percent year-on-year surge to 78.97 billion in the first six months of 2024, according to a report.

In its India Digital Payments Report for the first half of 2024 (January to June), payment technology service provider Worldline said on Thursday that UPI continues to rule the payment market and is rapidly expanding its reach.

"The number of UPI transactions rose significantly from 8.03 billion in January 2023 to 13.9 billion by June 2024. This growth in volume was matched by an increase in transaction value, which climbed from ₹12.98 trillion in January 2023 to an impressive ₹20.07 trillion in June 2024.

"When comparing H1 2024 to the same period in 2023, UPI transaction volume saw a substantial increase of 52 percent, rising from 51.9 billion to 78.97 billion," the report said.

The value of transactions grew 40 percent, increasing from ₹83.16 trillion to ₹116.63 trillion.

In terms of volume and value contribution, PhonePe emerged as the top UPI app, followed by Google Pay and Paytm.

However, the average ticket size (ATS) of UPI transactions saw a decline of 8 percent, the report noted.

The average ticket size (ATS) of all UPI transactions in H1 2023 was ₹1,603, while it dropped to ₹1,478 in 1H 2024, it said.

ATS consists of person-to-person (P2P) and person-to-merchant (P2M) transactions.

ATS in P2P transactions registered an almost flat year-on-year rise from ₹2,812 to ₹2,836.

ATS for P2M transactions dropped from ₹667 to ₹643, representing a 4 percent reduction.

"This significant rise in UPI transactions, particularly in the person-to-merchant (P2M) segment, further cements its position as the preferred method for micro-transactions, demonstrating long-term sustainability and even movement to larger transactions in the coming years," Worldline India CEO Ramesh Narasimhan said.

Grocery stores, restaurants, service stations, clothing stores, government services, pharmacies, and hospitals were the most visited in-store merchant categories in the first half of 2024.

According to the research, they collectively accounted for almost 53 percent of the overall transaction value and 68 percent of the transaction volume.

E-commerce, gaming, utilities, government services, and financial services made up around 81 percent of the overall transaction volume and 74 percent of the total transaction value in the online industry.

Furthermore, the report revealed that between January 2023 and June 2024, the number of POS (point of sale) terminals increased by 17 percent, rising from 7.65 million to 8.96 million.