What are the mobile payment options for transactions in India?
Introduction
The convenience associated with mobile payments has made this mode extremely popular, especially among the newer generation. According to data, over two billion people across the globe use mobile-based payment methods to make purchases.
There is rising competition in India for UPI payments market share, which leans heavily in favour of Paytm, PhonePe and Google Pay. With that said, it is imperative that to facilitate seamless and secure payments, advanced payment ecosystems and environments are needed.
They can provide a robust infrastructure for the variety of mobile transaction methods that exist in the country today. Let’s take a look at the various ways you can make a payment using your mobile phone in India.
Mobile payment options in India
Out of the countless mobile-based payment methods, the eight major ones are discussed in detail below.
1. UPI
UPI, short for Unified Payments Interface, is perhaps one of the preferred modes of digital mobile-based payments in India today. In this method, you can directly transfer funds from one bank account to another immediately without any charges.
In staggering statistics published by NPCI, it has come to light that in the month of March 2023:
- There were 399 banks live with UPI facilities in India
- The UPI transaction volume was ₹14,10,443.01.
The numbers clearly dictate that UPI has immense potential that allows people who own a mobile phone quickly initiate a mobile transaction.
2. Payment Links
Payment links are URLs sent on SMS, that redirect the customer to the payments page to complete a purchase or make a transaction. The biggest benefit of payment links is that they can be embedded anywhere — in emails, SMSs, social media, browsers, instant messages (like WhatsApp), etc.
When the customers click on these links, they are redirected to the payment gateway or a landing page where they can complete their transactions. These links are extremely versatile. They can be used even by businesses that don’t own a website and provide them with a way to collect payments from customers who make online purchases.
3. Setu’s Deep Links
Setu, a fintech API Infrastructure startup in India, provides a UPI-based payment collection solution for mobile-based payments. Setu’s UPI Deep Links can be shared on any channel that can be accessed from mobile devices. They contain information like the receiver’s account details, the amount payable and other crucial information concerning a mobile transaction.
The best part about Setu’s UPI deep links is that it offers customers a 2-step payment journey without any hassles. Once the receiver clicks on the Setu UPI link, all they need to do is enter their UPI pin and complete the transaction.
You can learn more about Setu links here.
4. Cards
Cards are one of the most widely adopted payment methods in the country. Especially with the convenience of adding card information to user profiles, customers can complete purchases using debit or credit cards through mobile phones.
Card payments have also been facilitated through RuPay cards launched by NPCI, which allows users to complete their payments digitally in a seamless manner.
According to data, the card transaction volume in 2022 was approximately ₹618 crores in India.
5. BBPS
BBPS, an acronym for Bharat Bill Payment System, is an integrated mobile payments system designed especially for recurring payments like utility bills, mobile recharges, etc. The platform is interoperable and provides a variety of online payment methods like Internet banking, UPI, mobile app payments and many more.
BBPS is a recent launch and is yet to gain traction in the country. Using this payment method, users can automate recurring payments to services like gas, electricity, water, DTH, and telecom on a monthly basis. You can check out Setu’s BBPS product here.
6. eRUPI
eRUPI is a special kind of mobile-based payment method that works like a voucher. The beneficiary receives an eRUPI voucher on their mobile devices through a QR code or a coupon that can be redeemed at the centres that accept it.
The speciality of this voucher is that it is a single-use code and is completely cashless and fully digital. It can be used without having to own any card and without downloading any mobile payment app. You don’t even need Internet banking to make payments using eRUPI.
7. USSD
Unstructured Supplementary Service Data (USSD) works over mobile phone networks by dialling *99#. On dialling this number, the users can then navigate through an interactive telephonic menu to make desired transactions.
The best part is that almost all the major network operators provide USSD-based payments in about 13 different languages. You can perform the following transactional functions using USSD:
- Account-to-account fund transfers between different banks
- Inquiries for the bank balance
- Bank statement inquiries
Facilitating payments with Plural
Indian consumers prefer to pay using their mobile phones. This is because the transactions are quick, require no hassles of cash or change, and need no receipt, as digital records serve the purpose.
With that in mind, Plural assists businesses in setting up a robust mobile transactions ecosystem with payments infrastructure that supports countless online payment methods.
Plural and Setu together provide businesses with:
- Plural Links — Fully customisable payment link solution for businesses to convey trust and transparency. With Plural Links, you can add your brand name, logo, relevant information for your customer, date of purchase, and more.
2. UPI Deep Links by Setu: A UPI-based solution that enables merchants to embed UPI payments on WhatsApp and other popular platforms to collect payments from customers easily.
3. BBPS by Setu: Businesses can get listed on popular payment platforms and collect recurring payments.
Interested in these products? Reach us at pgsupport@pinelabs.com.
Plural by Pine Labs has received an in-principle authorisation from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to operate as a Payment Aggregator.
Setu has received an in-principle authorisation from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to operate as an Account Aggregator.
