Commonwealth Secy General Scotland WELCOMES India's offer to share UPI technology with member countries

File Photo

New Delhi: Commonwealth Secretary General Patricia Scotland has welcomed India's offer to share its path-breaking Unified Payments Interface (UPI) technology with other members countries, hailing the move as potentially transformational. UPI is an instant real-time payment system which facilitates inter-bank peer-to-peer (P2P) transactions. The transaction is done through mobile in easy steps. Besides, there are no charges applicable for the UPI transaction so far.

Moreover, it has played a key role in the country making a transition to a cashless economy. The inexpensive medium for cashless transactions has been gaining traction month-on-month basis.

Payment through UPI has crossed a milestone of Rs 11 lakh crore in September, as per the data released by National Payments Corporation of India. An offer was made by India at the Commonwealth Bank of Governors meeting on October 12. This generosity is very welcome, Scotland told PTI in an interview.

India's willingness to share its technology with others, makes it different from other countries, she noted. We do think that India is a very bright spot. But the brightest spot is the willingness that India has to share that technology. The Indian bank has indicated in our government bank governance meeting, that they are willing to share the technology for this UPI with other member states. You know that (this) costs a lot of money to develop. This openness and generosity is very welcome, the secretary general of the 56-nation group said.

But India's innovation has given hope to many of those member states. Because not only has India developed these new techniques, but she has been willing to share them with others as public good. This has been potentially transformational. Because India has seen and tested some of these developments, which other countries are now thirsting for, and India's been willing to share. So, it is a bright spot, she observed.

Commonwealth law ministers will be meeting in Mauritius. One of the opportunities we're going to be talking about is not just digital trade, but how do we transform the justice system, and take better advantage of digitisation in all of our countries, she said.

The Commonwealth member nations, she observed, are looking forward to adopting the digital payment system. Because the fact that now, India has raised millions of its people out of poverty. By giving these direct payments in their hand you've been able to get the immediacy, women have benefited enormously from this. Because they don't get the money transferred to other people, they're getting it right here, she added.