Page 14 - NIS English 16-30 September, 2026

Cover Story
UPI TURNS 10

From Street Vendors to Malls:

UPI in Everyone’s Hands

The true strength n Street vendors have become part of the formal
of UPI lies not so banking system after being linked to formal credit
much in its statistics through the PM SVANidhi scheme. Merchants who
as in its reach. were once restricted to cash transactions are now
Person-to-Merchant building a digital transaction history via UPI. This
(P2M) payments history is proving instrumental in helping them
account for 63% of secure small, collateral-free loans.
total transactions, n Prime Minister Narendra Modi frequently highlights
with 86% of these this as a principle of "a platform for all, progress
involving amounts of for all." He notes that open digital platforms
less than ₹500. This like Aadhaar, DigiLocker, ONDC, and UPI have
clearly indicates that provided India with a public infrastructure where a
UPI is no longer a customer shopping in a mall and a roadside vendor
facility limited to big both benefit from the same facility.
cities; it has reached
vegetable vendors, tea
sellers, auto-rickshaw
drivers, and small
neighborhood shops.
Whether it is an auto-
rickshaw driver or
a street vendor, no
one needs to haggle
with passengers or
customers over ‘loose
change’ anymore—a
simple scan of a QR
code suffices.

Today, even a street vendor prehensive financial platform. Features such as ‘UPI
linked to PM SVANidhi conducts Lite’ for small payments, ‘UPI AutoPay’ for bills and
subscriptions, and ‘Credit on UPI’ for pre-approved
transactions via UPI - this is the credit limits are now available. Leveraging this
true picture of an inclusive India robust infrastructure, banks and fintech companies
are delivering financial products tailored to people’s
Narendra Modi, Prime Minister needs across every corner of the country.

12 NEW INDIA SAMACHAR || Sep 16-30, 2026