PayNow-UPI Payment Gateway Integration: A Quick Guide

Table of Content:

1. PayNow-UPI Payment Gateway Integration: Overview​
2. UPI-PayNow Linkage Benefits For Citizens
3. PayNow-UPI Interlinkage: Participating Indian Banks
4. PayNow-UPI Integration: Payment Limit
5. UPI And PayNow: In A Nutshell

PayNow- UPI payment gateway integration is an initiative to have faster, more efficient, and more transparent real-time cross-border transactions  between India and Singapore. A phone call between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Singaporean counterpart Lee Hsien Loong kicked off the virtual launch. RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das and Ravi Menon, Managing Director, Monetary Authority of Singapore were also present at the virtual event.

The PayNow-UPI payment gateway integration aims to enable fast payments, allowing quick and safe cross-border fund transfers for users. Moreover, the integration will also benefit the Indian diaspora in Singapore, particularly migrant workers and students, by allowing for instant and low-cost money transfers from Singapore to India and vice versa.

PayNow-UPI Payment Gateway Integration: Overview

Initially, cross-border retail payments used to be expensive, but the PayNow-UPI integration created a milestone by promoting transparency and developing infrastructure for global digital payments between two countries. Furthermore, this linkage aligns with the G20's financial inclusion goals of making payments faster, cheaper, and more accessible.

UPI India and Singapore PayNow integration is said to strengthen India's position on a global scale. 

Through the UPI-PayNow linkage, account holders of participating banks and financial institutions in India and Singapore can conduct cross-border remittance transactions. Only Person to Person (P2P) remittances for "Maintenance of Relatives Abroad" and "Gift" are currently permitted under the PayNow-UPI integration.

There is an opt in/opt out feature in the apps of participating banks in India for receiving Singapore remittances.

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UPI-PayNow Linkage Benefits For Citizens

• Users in both countries can transfer funds at low costs and with a faster payment system.

• The UPI integration with Singapore's PayNow allows a seamless transfer of funds in real-time. It will boost economic growth, cultural development, and social cohesion. 

• The initiative will help Indian workers and students in Singapore enjoy quick and seamless transactions. 

• The PayNow- UPI Payment Gateway Integration will make cross-border remittances more accessible, faster, and cost-efficient and will bolster the trade and remittance flow between the two countries. 

• PayNow- UPI Payment Gateway Integration is expected to become a source opportunity for small businesses that operate with partners living in Singapore. As per the experts, the initiative will offer them a way to streamline faster and easier cross-border transactions. 

PayNow-UPI Interlinkage: Participating Indian Banks 

For sending remittances via the UPI-PayNow interlinkage, four Indian banks participating are: ICICI Bank, Indian Bank, Indian Overseas Bank, and State Bank of India.

The services will be available for Singapore users via DBS-Singapore and Liquid Group.

Participating banks in India for receiving remittances:

• Axis Bank

• DBS Bank India

• ICICI Bank

• Indian Bank

• Indian Overseas Bank

• State Bank of India

Participating banks in India for sending remittances:

• ICICI Bank

• Indian Bank

• Indian Overseas Bank

• State Bank of India

Currently, the UPI ID registered with the same bank where the account is held can only be used to send or receive money.

PayNow-UPI Integration: Payment Limit 

There is a daily transaction limit of Rs. 60,000 for cross-border remittance transactions via the UPI-PayNow interlinkage, which is approximately Singapore Dollar(SGD) 1,000.

UPI And PayNow: In A Nutshell

India’s Unified Payments Interface (UPI) payment gateway has transformed the digital payment system in the country and has enabled users to make round-the-clock payments more quickly than ever. UPI India not only eliminates the risk of the remitter sharing bank account details, but it also supports P2P (person-to-person) and P2M (person-to-merchant) payments. 

On the other hand, PayNow in Singapore is similar to the UPI payment gateway in India.  It enables peer-to-peer fund transfers via participating banks and other financial institutions. Users can use their mobile number, Singapore National Registration Identity Card (NRIC)/Foreign Identification Number (FIN), or virtual payment address to send and receive money instantly from one bank or e-wallet to another.

Conclusion

The PayNow-UPI payment gateway integration is a big milestone in India’s digital leadership - an initiative that closely aligns with the G20's financial inclusion priorities of having faster, cheaper, and more transparent cross-border payments. 

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