Global Fintech Fest 2024: RBI Governor Launches UPI Circle, Bharat BillPay For Business

Reserve Bank of India (RBI) governor Shaktikanta Das on Wednesday (August 28) announced the launch of two new fintech products on the first day of the Global Fintech Festival 2024.

UPI Circle and Bharat BillPay for Business (BBPS) are the new two offerings. While the former allows UPI users to delegate payments either in full or partial to trusted secondary users, the latter enables companies to automate various invoice payment processes.

Both the offerings have been built by the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI). In a statement, the payments body said that the new payment solutions will look to enhance inclusivity, security, and efficiency of India’s digital payment ecosystem.

What Is UPI Circle?

UPI Circle allows customers to link with trusted secondary users on the UPI app for either partial or full delegation of payments. 

Under full delegation, a primary user can authorise a “trusted” secondary user to initiate and complete UPI transactions on their behalf as per defined spend limits. The NPCI has capped full delegation at a monthly limit of INR 15,000 per delegation and a transaction limit of INR 5,000. 

Meanwhile, partial delegation enables a primary user to authorise initiation of payment requests by a secondary user. Subsequently, the primary user can then complete the UPI transaction with the UPI pin. 

The NPCI said that a primary user can delegate up to five secondary users and a secondary user can accept delegation from only one primary user. Existing UPI limits shall be applicable in case of partial delegation, added the payments body. 

What Is BBPS For Business?

At the event, the RBI governor announced the expansion of BBPS services. The new offering will largely cater to business enablement platforms irrespective of size and will look to streamline B2B payments and collections. 

Operating through a single, centralised and interoperable platform, Bharat BillPay For Business will offer services such as business onboarding, searching and adding business, purchase order (PO) creation, invoice management, automated reminders, guaranteed settlement, financing, AR (accounts receivable) and AP (accounts payable) dashboard, and online dispute resolution.

“Banks, enterprise resource planning (ERP) platforms and B2B fintechs alike can now connect with BBPS for Business and offer their clients a holistic solution…This solution will empower businesses to seamlessly digitalise the existing manual processes, and enhance the services offered by B2B players by on-boarding these businesses on a comprehensive and interoperable digital invoice and payment solution,” the NPCI said. 

Meanwhile, fintech startup EnKash and neobank OPEN have partnered with the NPCI to launch B2B invoice payments on the BBPS for Business platform. 

EnKash said that its platform, called Olympus, will support a wide array of payment methods including UPI, net banking, cards, NEFT, and IMPS to businesses. 

“… Our strategic collaboration with NBBL will transform this process by addressing compliance challenges and streamlining the entire payment journey. Our platform ensures synchronised invoice acknowledgement, real-time transaction information, and seamless reconciliation, bringing a new level of efficiency and transparency to business operations,” said EnKash cofounder Yadvendra Tyagi.

The slew of announcements came at the fintech gathering at GFF 2024. The event also saw Flipkart’s fintech app super.money launching its maiden product, a co-branded credit card in partnership with Utkarsh Small Finance Bank.  

Meanwhile, the RBI also approved Fintech Association for Consumer Empowerment’s (FACE) application to appoint it as a self-regulatory organisation (SRO) for the fintech sector.