Agreement signed to launch UPI in Sri Lanka

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday said that India and Sri Lanka have agreed on the usage of the Unified Payments Interface (UPI) mechanism. The agreement signed to launch UPI in Sri Lanka will increase fintech connectivity, PM Modi said during a joint address with Sri Lanka President Ranil Wickremesinghe.

Wickremesinghe on Thursday kicked off a two-day visit to India. It is the first visit to India by a Sri Lankan leader since the island nation reeled under a severe economic crisis last year. Commenting on the development, Satyajeet Kunjeer, Founder and CEO at Deciml said, “UPI continues to be the preferred mode of payment in India and there could be potential for a similar impact in Sri Lanka as well.”

“India wants to play a larger role in the global economic landscape and taking indigenous innovations like the UPI to different countries (Singapore, Middle East, France and now Sri Lanka) is a very effective way to demonstrate this desire and also have soft power,” Vivek Iyer, Partner at Grant Thornton Bhar told CNBC-TV18.com.

According to In-solutions global CEO Anup Nayar, Sri Lanka can expect to experience increased convenience, security, and efficiency in its financial transactions by embracing UPI, paving the way for a more modern and interconnected economy in the region.

The decision on UPI comes days after India and France signed a similar agreement on UPI.

Enabling UPI payments in France means Indian tourists would now be able to make payments in France in rupee through UPI. It will start from the Eiffel Tower. In addition, Indians visiting Europe will be able to use their UPI app to make their payments in France in the rupee using local QR or UPI ID. UPI and Singapore’s PayNow also signed an agreement earlier this year. (www.cnbc.com)