Rebound In Digital Payments Strengthened In June

Digital payments platforms saw a continued rebound in June as economic activity picked up from the lows of March and April and more consumers took to online payments.

Data released by the National Payments Corporation of India on Wednesday via its official Twitter account showed a pick-up across all key digital payments platforms. Transactions via the Unified Payment Interface and the Aadhaar-Enabled Payment Systems hit record highs.

UPI Reaches A New High

Transactions on the Unified Payments Interface rose to Rs 2.61 lakh crore in June from Rs 2.18 lakh crore in May. Compared to a year-ago period, UPI transactions rose 78%.

There were 134 crore transactions conducted via UPI in June compared to 123 in the month before, according to NPCI data.

Banks and payments companies have been seen a surge in new users to their internet banking and mobile applications since the lockdown was imposed in late March this year. Several payments companies have also used cash-backs and tech-solutions to drive the adoption in the past three months, BloombergQuint reported on June 8.

AEPS Continues To Soar

The Aadhaar-Enabled Payments System is the primary channel for the government to provide cash transfers under its Covid-19 relief package. As a result, transactions on the platform have grown consistently over the last three months.

There was a 10% increase in AEPS transactions to Rs 19,981 crore in June compared to Rs 18,129 crore in the month before, according to NPCI data. The platform registered Rs 10,170 crore worth of financial transactions in March and Rs 14,708 crore in April this year.

AEPS transactions have increased 125% from Rs 8,867 crore in June 2019.

Growing Adoption Of BBPS

While transactions on the Bharat Bill Payments System fell 70% between March and April this year, the platform continues to on-board new customer and bill payment companies.

There were a total of 1.76 crore transactions on BBPS worth Rs 2,969 crore in June, around 36% higher than the 1.65 crore transactions worth Rs 2,178 crore in May. There are total 245 live bill payment companies on the platform as of June compared to 216 in May and 190 in March this year.

BBPS transactions have increased 89% from Rs 1,572.6 crore in June 2019.

Slower Rebound In IMPS

Transactions on the IMPS platform are rebounding slowly, perhaps an indication of below-normal economic activity.

IMPS transactions rose 23% to Rs 2.06 lakh crore in June this year from Rs 1.68 lakh crore in the previous month. The platform is used for high-value payment transactions.

The overall value of transactions, however, is around 3.5% lower than the pre-Covid-19 level of Rs 2.14 lakh crore seen in February 2020. The transactions via IMPS reached a high at Rs 2.17 lakh crore in January this year.

FASTag Below Peak

Transactions on the NPCI’s FASTag, or National Electronic Toll Collection platform, have reflected the environment where restrictions on movement continue.The platform is used to process payments for vehicles passing through toll plazas across highways.

Payments on the platform rose 33% to nearly 8.2 crore transactions, worth Rs 1,512 crore in June compared to 5.5 crore transactions worth Rs 1,142 crore in May this year. But they remain 18% below the peak of Rs 1,841 crore in February this year.

The National Highways Authority of India suspended toll payments for a limited amount of time during the lockdown beginning March, only to resume collections from April 20. Besides, movement for non-essential purposes remains restricted in many parts of the country.

On an annual basis, FASTag transactions have risen 153% from just Rs 596 crore in June 2019.