UPI hits 55.49 crore users, clocks record 24,161 crore transactions in FY26
Synopsis
UPI has processed over 24,161 crore transactions worth ₹314.23 lakh crore in FY26 — a near 30% volume jump in a single year — while crossing 55.49 crore registered users. With NPCI International exporting the platform globally and a new security framework in place, India's payments stack is no longer just a domestic story.
Key Takeaways
UPI onboarded nearly 55.49 crore users as of June 2026 , according to data shared in the Lok Sabha .
UPI processed a record 24,161.69 crore transactions worth ₹314.23 lakh crore in FY2025-26 .
Transaction volume has grown roughly 5x in five years — from 4,595.61 crore in FY22 to over 24,161 crore in FY26.
NPCI International Payments Ltd. (NIPL) , set up in April 2020 , is deploying UPI and RuPay in international markets.
NPCI has issued the Comprehensive UPI Information Security Framework (CUISF) 2025 and a Mobile Application Security Framework to strengthen platform safety.
UPI is now linked with payment systems of several countries for cross-border person-to-person and person-to-merchant transactions.
The Unified Payments Interface (UPI) had onboarded nearly 55.49 crore users as of June 2026, and processed a record 24,161.69 crore transactions worth ₹314.23 lakh crore during FY2025-26, the Centre informed Parliament on Monday, 20 July 2026. Minister of State for Finance Pankaj Chaudhary shared the data in a written reply in the Lok Sabha, underscoring the scale of India's digital payments revolution.
Five Years of Uninterrupted Growth
The trajectory of UPI adoption tells a compounding story. In FY2021-22, UPI processed 4,595.61 crore transactions worth ₹84.16 lakh crore. That figure more than doubled to 8,371.44 crore transactions valued at ₹139.15 lakh crore in FY2022-23.
Growth continued sharply in FY2023-24, with transaction volume reaching 13,112.95 crore at a value of ₹199.95 lakh crore, before climbing further to 18,586.60 crore transactions worth ₹260.56 lakh crore in FY2024-25. The latest FY26 figures represent a near 30% jump in volume over the previous year.
Global Expansion Through NPCI International
NPCI International Payments Ltd. (NIPL), a wholly owned subsidiary of the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) established in April 2020, is actively expanding India's digital payments footprint overseas. According to Minister Chaudhary, NIPL is partnering with foreign entities to deploy UPI and the RuPay card scheme in international markets.
These partnerships serve a dual purpose: enabling Indian tourists and the diaspora to make seamless cross-border payments, while also helping partner countries build UPI-like real-time payment infrastructure and domestic card systems modelled on RuPay. UPI has already been linked with the payment systems of several countries to facilitate both person-to-person remittances and person-to-merchant transactions.
Security Measures Strengthened
The government, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), and NPCI have collectively introduced a range of measures to bolster the security and transparency of UPI transactions. These include risk-based transaction limits to curb fraud, safeguards against unauthorised mobile number changes, and enhanced protections against misuse of SMS-based authentication.
Notably, NPCI has issued the Comprehensive UPI Information Security Framework (CUISF) 2025 and a Mobile Application Security Framework, mandating advanced security controls across all UPI applications to improve the resilience of the ecosystem.
What This Means for India's Digital Economy
UPI's growth from under 5,000 crore transactions in FY22 to over 24,000 crore in FY26 reflects a structural shift in how Indians transact — one that has outpaced most global real-time payment systems in volume. This comes amid sustained government and regulatory push to deepen financial inclusion and reduce cash dependency. With NIPL accelerating international deployments, India's payments infrastructure is increasingly being positioned as an exportable model.
The next phase of UPI's growth will likely hinge on deepening penetration in Tier-3 and rural markets, where smartphone and internet access continues to expand, as well as on how effectively the new security frameworks contain the rising incidence of digital payment fraud.
Point of View
Making the CUISF 2025 rollout more critical than it might appear. The more consequential question is whether NPCI International can convert bilateral UPI linkages into genuinely scalable cross-border infrastructure, or whether these remain diplomatic showcases. India's real-time payment volume already dwarfs comparable systems globally; the challenge now is governance, fraud containment, and rural depth — not headline numbers.
NationPress
21 Jul 2026
Frequently Asked Questions
How many users are on UPI as of June 2026?
Nearly 55.49 crore users had been onboarded on the UPI platform as of June 2026, according to data presented by Minister of State for Finance Pankaj Chaudhary in the Lok Sabha on 20 July 2026.
What was UPI's total transaction value in FY2025-26?
UPI processed 24,161.69 crore transactions worth ₹314.23 lakh crore in FY2025-26, making it the highest annual figure recorded since the platform's launch.
How has UPI transaction volume grown over the past five years?
UPI volume has grown approximately fivefold — from 4,595.61 crore transactions in FY2021-22 to 24,161.69 crore in FY2025-26. Each year has seen consistent double-digit percentage growth in both volume and value.
What is NPCI International and what role does it play?
NPCI International Payments Ltd. (NIPL) is a wholly owned subsidiary of NPCI, established in April 2020, tasked with expanding UPI and RuPay globally. It partners with foreign entities to deploy real-time payment infrastructure and enables Indian travellers and the diaspora to make cross-border payments using UPI.
What security measures have been introduced for UPI?
The government, RBI, and NPCI have introduced risk-based transaction limits, safeguards against unauthorised mobile number changes, and enhanced SMS-authentication protections. NPCI has also mandated the Comprehensive UPI Information Security Framework (CUISF) 2025 and a Mobile Application Security Framework for all UPI applications.
