MDR

According to reports, the implementation of the new UPI MDR framework is likely to be deferred to January 1, 2027 from the earlier proposed October 15 rollout, with no final decision yet.

UPI MDR may be deferred to January 1, while the exemption for small merchants could be expanded to businesses with annual turnover of up to ₹40 lakh

A 0.4 per cent merchant discount rate takes effect on October 15, while small payments remain free; UPI recorded 802 million average daily transactions in September.

RBI Governor Sanjay Malhotra said a small MDR on select UPI payments is unlikely to materially affect transaction volumes as the new charge takes effect from October 15

Clocks highest daily avg volume of over 800 mn transactions

AICPDF and AIMRA have withdrawn from the October 2 protest after urging the government to defer the proposed UPI MDR and raise the threshold limit to ₹5 lakh

Mobile phone retailers across India plan to observe October 2 as "No UPI Day" in protest against 0.4 per cent merchant discount rate charges on UPI transactions, a senior official of industry body AIMRA said. The government has introduced a 0.4 per cent fee on UPI transfers exceeding Rs 2,000 to merchants from October 15, while exempting person-to-person transactions as well as small payments from any charges. "The All India Mobile Retailers Association (AIMRA) has called for a 'NO UPI DAY' on October 2, 2026, to highlight the concerns of mobile retailers regarding the 0.4 per cent Merchant Discount Rate (MDR) applicable to eligible merchant UPI transactions," AIMRA Vice President and President for Delhi NCR region, Tarvinder Singh, said in a statement. He said retailers will symbolically cover UPI QR Codes with black cloth and refrain from accepting UPI payments on Gandhi Jayanti. According to a representation sent to Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman by AIMRA, the move to impos

The Supreme Court will on Monday hear a plea challenging the Centre's decision to impose a Merchant Discount Rate (MDR) on specified UPI person-to-merchant transactions of over Rs 2,000. Ending nearly six years of fully free UPI payments, the government has introduced a 0.4 per cent fee on transfers worth over Rs 2,000 made to merchants through the UPI platform from October 15 while explicitly ring-fencing everyday person-to-person transactions and small payments from any charge. The MDR will be capped at Rs 300 for payments of Rs 75,000 and above. Essential and thin-margin sectors -- railways, telecom, insurance, fuel and agricultural inputs -- will pay a flat MDR of Rs 5 per transaction above Rs 2,000. Payments into mutual funds, securities and through stockbrokers and dealers will attract 0.02 per cent MDR, also capped at Rs 300. Person-to-person (P2P) transfers -- which make up 37 per cent of UPI's transaction volume and 70 per cent of its transaction value -- will continue to

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has rejected as "absolutely baseless" allegations by the Opposition that the decision to levy a 0.4 per cent Merchant Discount Rate (MDR) on specified UPI transactions above Rs 2,000 was taken under external pressure, saying it was a professional decision by the payment ecosystem. Talking to PTI, Sitharaman said the decision was completely professional, and it was taken jointly by the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI), payment banks and merchant banks, and not imposed by the government. She rubbished the Opposition's allegations that the government had yielded to foreign pressure, saying the MDR was not a tax and would not accrue to the government. "Absolutely baseless. And I totally deny it," she said when asked about Opposition allegations that the decision on Unified Payments Interface (UPI) MDR was taken under external pressure, particularly from the US. The Finance Minister said the Opposition was "searching for issues" and makin

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has said the charge on specified merchant transactions above ₹2,000 will be borne within the payments ecosystem, while UPI payments by customers will remain free

From October 15, MDR will apply to certain UPI payments above ₹2,000 made to large merchants, while customers and eligible small vendors will continue to pay no fee

PhonePe, Paytm, Pine Labs and MobiKwik are stepping up merchant acquisition and device deployment as UPI MDR returns and NPCI plans a Rs 3,000-crore fund

Proposed UPI MDR will give remitter banks the largest revenue share, while private banks dominate the merchant-side transactions

Business associations plan a No UPI Day on October 2 to protest the 0.4 per cent merchant discount rate set to apply to UPI merchant payments above Rs 2,000 from October 15

An SBI official says the UPI merchant discount rate could cover the bank's transaction costs and leave a small surplus, while merchants may split payments to avoid the fee

A fee on UPI transactions is economically logical, but it reflects the govt's evolving approach to one of its key political constituencies

Platinum Jasmine A 2018 Trust sold 2 per cent stake in Lenskart Solutions through a block deal on Monday, worth about ₹2,391 crore

The benefits of keeping it free far outweigh the costs

NPCI’s new 0.4% MDR on select UPI merchant payments opens up a new revenue pool for payment companies. Here’s what brokerages estimate for Paytm and Pine Labs.

The payments system is set to get a big leg-up with the pricing on UPI