New Delhi: The cross-border payments system linking India’s Unified Payments Interface (UPI) with Singapore’s PayNow is now fully operational, marking a major leap in real-time global money transfers.
Facilitating Instant, Low-Cost Transfers
Sopnendu Mohanty, former Chief Fintech Officer at the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), confirmed the development, stating that both remittances and retail payments between the two countries can now be done instantly and seamlessly. The UPI-PayNow system allows users in India and Singapore to send money using just a mobile number or UPI ID, eliminating the need to register on the other country’s platform.
This means a user in Singapore can send money directly to an Indian UPI account and vice versa, replicating the ease of domestic transactions across borders.
Fostering Financial Inclusion
The system is being promoted as the world’s largest real-time cross-border payment link. It was first launched in February 2022 during a virtual event attended by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Singaporean Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong. Former RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das and MAS Managing Director Ravi Menon also joined the launch.
Though the project faced technical and onboarding delays, its full rollout is now complete. The system is expected to halve transaction costs and enhance digital financial access for a lot of people.
Benefits for Migrants and Small Businesses
With over $1 billion in annual remittances from Singapore to India, the new linkage will benefit a large Indian diaspora, including migrant workers and students. It will also support small businesses and families that rely on cross-border money transfers.
This initiative aligns with G20’s financial inclusion goals, the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals, and RBI’s Payments Vision 2019–21. Similar collaborations are underway, with India exploring UPI links with Dubai and other Asia-Pacific countries.
