Is UPI the new Rs 2000? Data suggests so, says SBI

Rural and semi-urban areas are leading the surge in UPI transactions

Against the popular perception that UPI is popular in India's metros only, data shows that now semi-urban areas are accounting for one-third of the share in value/volume, said SBI in a report. 

The top 15 states in India accounted for almost 90% of share in value/volume.

 The average ticket size of these 15 states ranges between Rs 1600 to Rs 2200, implying that UPI has effectively replaced much of the currency in circulation in India. 

"District-wise analysis indicate that the top 100 districts of India accounted for 45% share in UPI value/volume Thus, UPI has effectively replaced much of the currency in circulation," said Dr. Soumya Kanti Ghosh, Group Chief Economic Adviser at SBI.

The SBI report also said that 67 per cent of UPI transactions in the person-to-merchant segment and 87 per cent in the person-to-person segment are for transactions over Rs 2,000.

  In April 2023, UPI moved over Rs 14 lakh crore over 886 crore transactions — averaging nearly Rs 1600 per transaction. Last April, UPI had moved Rs 9.8 lakh crore over 558 crore transactions. This means the debit card is also losing out. "Though we saw 4.6 crore debit cards being added to the market taking the total to 96 crore, transactions are falling hard. The debit card moved just under Rs 55,000 crore (down 16%) over 23 crore transactions (down 30%)," said another report by BankBazaar.