UPI goes global: Indians can now pay in rupees at Eiffel Tower in France

India officially launched the Unified Payments Interface at the iconic Eiffel Tower in Paris, calling it a manifestation of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision to take the Unified Payments Interface global.

Previously, India and France signed an agreement in the field of digital payments in July last year, according to which India’s Unified Payment Interface can be used for retail payments in European countries, becoming the first country in the European continent to achieve this.

Unified Payments Interface is an Indian instant payment system developed by the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) in 2016.

“UPI officially launched at a massive Republic Day reception at the iconic Eiffel Tower. Implementing Prime Minister @narendramodi’s statement and vision of making UPI global,” the official X account of the Indian Embassy in France posted along with photos from the event.

Modi responded: “It’s great to see this, it marks an important step for UPI to go global. This is a great example of encouraging digital payments and strengthening connectivity.” According to NPCI, UPI is a A system that integrates multiple bank accounts into a single mobile app (for any participating bank), merging multiple banking functions, seamless funds routing and merchant payments into a single engine.

Incidentally, at the invitation of Prime Minister Modi, French President Macron attended the 75th Republic Day celebrations in New Delhi on January 26 as the chief guest. Prime Minister Narendra Modi made the announcement while addressing the Indian community on the banks of the Seine at the Musicale, a performing arts center on the Seine island in Paris, France.

“At the 75th Republic Day reception, the historic year of India-France strategic partnership demonstrated the new vitality of India-France relations,” the official account Government spokesperson Prisca Thevenot organized the event for the occasion.

It also thanked members of Parliament, business leaders, academics, friends of India and Indians in France.

NPCI said in a statement that its subsidiary NPCI International Payments (NIPL) has partnered with French e-commerce and proximity payments Lyra, which will help ensure the UPI payment mechanism is accepted in European countries, starting with the Eiffel Tower.

Currently, Indian tourists have become the second largest group of international visitors to the Eiffel Tower. Indian tourists can initiate payment simply by scanning the QR code generated on the merchant’s website.

Eiffel Tower is the first merchant in France to offer UPI payments, and the service will soon be extended to other merchants in the travel and retail sectors in France and Europe.