BIG changes in UPI: Google Pay, PhonePe, Paytm users will not be able to check...., from...

From August 1, the UPI system in apps with crores of users who use apps like Google Pay, PhonePe, Paytm will undergo a major change. National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) is bringing new rules regarding the use of its Application Programming Interface (API). UPI(Unified Payments interface) enables instant money transfer through mobile phones. These have reduced the use of cards and cash. However, day by day, the load on these UPI is increasing. Every month around 16 billion transactions are being processed. 

Users of UPI are also increasing at a rapid pace, due to which UPI is struggling with some  technical weaknesses. UPI has also faced some frequent outages in recent three to four months. On April 12, the UPI was down for 5 hours, which caused chaos and panic among users, as they faced problems in financial transactions across the nation. The main reason for UPI going down is the repeated API requests, and the increased burden.

Since the launch of UPI, the use of wallets, cash and cards have seen a decline. As per report, the dependency of UPI has increased. 

1. Slight interruption in UPI service causes trouble to millions of users. 
2. Every second 7 thousand transactions are being processed through UPI. 
3. If UPI goes down for even a minute, then 4 lakh people are affected. 
4. At present, the number of people making UPI payments is said to be more than 40 crores. 

What are the new rules?

To deal with these technical issues, new changes will be implemented from August 1. NPCI has asked all banks and PSPs i.e. PhonePe, Paytm, Google Pay etc. payment service providers to control the 10 most used APIs by July 31. 

1. There will be a limit on the balance you check from the UPI app- check balance 50 times a day 
2. There will be a change in the auto payments you have set.
3. There will be a limit to check how many accounts are linked to the mobile number- 25 times a day. 
4. Autopay payments like any SIP or Netflix membership payment will be done only in non-peak hours, i.e before 10 am, from 1 pm to 5 pm, and after 9:30 pm.