The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) and the European Central Bank (ECB) are moving forward with linking India's Unified Payments Interface (UPI) with Europe's TARGET Instant Payment Settlement (TIPS) system. This initiative has entered the "realisation phase," marking a significant step towards enabling faster and cheaper cross-border payments between India and the Euro Area.
The collaboration aims to create a direct digital payment channel between the two regions, enhancing accessibility and transparency in cross-border remittances. The proposed linkage is expected to benefit users across both jurisdictions by making remittances more efficient, transparent, and accessible. This move aligns with the G20 goals for improving cross-border payments.
Following constructive discussions, the RBI and the ECB, along with NPCI International Payments Limited (NIPL), have agreed to begin the technical integration phase. NIPL, a wholly-owned subsidiary of the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI), is responsible for deploying UPI and the RuPay card scheme internationally. The RBI and NIPL will collaborate closely with the ECB to operationalize the UPI-TIPS link, including technical integration, risk management, and settlement arrangements.
UPI has gained considerable traction in recent years, with the Indian government actively promoting its use in cross-border transactions. As of October 2025, UPI recorded its highest-ever transaction numbers, with 20.7 billion transactions worth ₹27.28 trillion. There are currently 509 million UPI users in India.
UPI is already operational in 13 countries, and discussions are underway with another 7-8 nations across the Middle East and East Asia. These connections encompass merchant acceptance and full cross-border remittance rails. Notable examples include the UPI-PayNow linkage with Singapore and merchant acceptance pilots in Japan with NTT Data. Furthermore, NIPL partnered with Bahrain's BENEFIT to connect UPI with Bahrain's Fawri+ electronic fund transfer system, supporting instant and secure cross-border remittances between the two countries.
The interlinking of UPI with TIPS goes beyond mere acceptance, representing a full system-level integration. This marks the first time India and Europe are collaborating to connect their domestic instant payment systems, paving the way for real-time remittances between the two regions. The RBI is actively pursuing connections between UPI and fast payment systems in other economies to promote cross-border transactions. Acceptance of UPI is already enabled for Indian tourists in countries such as Singapore, Bhutan, Nepal, Sri Lanka, the United Arab Emirates, Mauritius, Qatar, and France. There are over two million international merchants onboarded to enable UPI acceptance.
