RBI to introduce AI-based conversational, offline payments on UPI.Conversational instructions hold immense potential in enhancing ease of use and, consequently the reach of  UPI system,” said the RBI, adding that this channel will be made available in both smartphones and feature phone-based UPI channels, thereby helping in deepening of digital penetration in the country.

The facility will, initially, be available in Hindi and English and subsequently be made available in more Indian languages.

“AI-driven payments, which are essentially voice payments, are still in nascent stage; adoption will depend on setting of uniform standards to drive interoperability among payment apps. It will also allow voice assistants to initiate payments, thereby expanding market for service providers and strengthen payments in the IOT space,” said Ranadurjay Talukdar

UPI-Lite

The central bank is also looking to  introduce offline payments on UPI using Near Field Communication (NFC) technology through ‘UPI-Lite’ on-device wallet. UPI-Lite was launched in Sept 2022 to optimise processing resources for banks, thereby reducing transaction failures. It processes over 1 crore transactions per month at present.

“This feature will not only enable retail digital payments in situations where Internet / telecom connectivity is weak or not available, it will also ensure speed with minimal transaction declines,” said  central bank

“This move ensures swift transaction processing, solidifying NFC payments as secure and user-friendly payment alternative. By leveraging this state-of-the-art technology, transaction volumes are set to witness asubstantial increase, granting users  seamless, hassle-free experience for UPI transactions tailored to their convenience,” said Rahul Jain, CFO, NTT DATA Payment Services India.

RBI is also looking to enhance transaction limit for small value digital payments in off-line mode to Rs 500, within  overall limit for each payment instrument, to increase  speed of small value transactions.

At present, limit of ₹200 per transaction and  overall limit of ₹2,000 per payment instrument has been prescribed for small value digital payments in offline mode including for National Common Mobility Card (NCMC) and UPI Lite.

On bilateral agreements for use of UPI internationally, RBI said UPI linkage has been done with Singapore and has signed MoU with UAE to link UPI with their IPP system, which should happen in coming months.