India Touches 709 Million Active UPI QRs, Records 59.33 Billion Transactions in July–September

Mumbai: India’s Unified Payments Interface (UPI) continued its strong growth trajectory in the July–September period, with transaction volumes rising 33.5 per cent year-on-year to 59.33 billion transactions, while transaction value increased 21 per cent to Rs 74.84 lakh crore, according to a report released on Thursday.

The country reached 709 million active UPI QR codes, marking a 21 per cent rise since July 2024. Dense QR acceptance across kirana stores, pharmacies, transport hubs, and rural markets has made scan-and-pay the default payment mode nationwide, the Worldline India report noted.

Person-to-merchant (P2M) transactions continued to outpace person-to-person (P2P) payments, underlining UPI’s growing dominance in everyday retail spending. P2M transactions grew 35 per cent to 37.46 billion, while P2P transactions rose 29 per cent to 21.65 billion.

The third quarter of 2025 further cemented India’s position as the world’s most dynamic real-time payments ecosystem, where every scan, tap, and click is reshaping consumer and merchant behaviour.

The average ticket size declined to Rs 1,262 from Rs 1,363, indicating increased usage of UPI for micro-transactions such as mobility, food, healthcare essentials, and hyperlocal commerce.

Point-of-sale (PoS) terminals increased 35 per cent to 12.12 million between July 2024 and July 2025. Bharat QR stood at 6.10 million, registering a marginal decline amid the growing dominance of UPI QR codes.

Private banks led acceptance deployment with an 84 per cent market share. Credit card issuance grew 8 per cent year-on-year to 113.39 million cards, while debit cards reached 1.02 billion and prepaid cards stood at 470.1 million.

Credit card transactions increased 26 per cent to 1.45 billion, with transaction value touching Rs 6.07 lakh crore. In contrast, debit card transactions declined 22 per cent, reflecting the migration of low-value payments to UPI.

Mobile and tap-based payments continued to gain momentum, with contactless adoption accelerating across metros, mobility services, and quick-service retail.

Looking ahead, the report said the outlook for Q4 2025 and early 2026 points to faster innovation and deeper ecosystem integration. Interoperable QR is expected to move from pilot stages to widespread daily use across sectors such as mobility, healthcare, fuel stations, and public utilities, enabling a unified scan-and-pay experience.

—With inputs from IANS