UPI Hits Record 25.47 Billion Transactions in October

India's Unified Payments Interface (UPI) processed a record 25.47 billion transactions in October, up 5.8% from 24.07 billion in September, according to data from the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI).

Transaction value rose 7.4% month on month to ₹31.53 lakh crore, from ₹29.37 lakh crore. Year on year, volume grew 23% and value 16%. October was the first month in which UPI handled more than 25 billion transactions and more than ₹30 lakh crore in payments.

Daily averages cross new thresholds

October has 31 days against September's 30, so daily figures give a cleaner comparison. UPI averaged 822 million transactions a day, up from 802 million. Average daily value climbed to ₹1,01,707 crore from ₹97,913 crore, crossing ₹1 lakh crore for the first time. On that basis, daily volume grew 2.5% and daily value 3.9% from September.

The rise coincided with the festive season. It followed a slight dip in September, when volume fell 1.8% and value 1.5% from the previous month.

MDR rollout still pending

The numbers arrive ahead of a planned merchant discount rate (MDR) on select UPI payments. NPCI postponed the rollout, originally scheduled for October 15, until after Diwali, and said the new date would be notified separately.

MDR is the fee merchants pay banks and payment companies to process digital transactions. Under the revised framework, eligible person-to-merchant payments above ₹2,000 would attract a 0.4% charge, capped at ₹300 for transactions of ₹75,000 and above. Person-to-person payments would stay free of MDR.

The structure would give banks and payment service providers a revenue stream on eligible transactions and could improve monetisation across the UPI ecosystem. Merchant bodies, however, have raised concerns about higher acceptance costs and have sought relief before the change takes effect.