Two days past Deepavali, NPCI yet to announce a date for UPI MDR rollout
The Hindu - Business/Economy · Published 11 November 2026 · Last updated
The National Payments Corporation of India has yet to notify a new implementation date for the proposed Merchant Discount Rate on select Unified Payments Interface transactions following its deferment past Deepavali.
Key points
- Two days after Deepavali, the National Payments Corporation of India has not announced a new date for implementing the Merchant Discount Rate on Unified Payments Interface transactions, confirming via a spokesperson that no announcement exists at the moment.
- The National Payments Corporation of India had put the proposed charge on hold nearly a month prior, stating that a new date would be announced immediately after Deepavali following an original implementation target of October 15.
- The proposed framework introduces a zero-point-four percent charge on select person-to-merchant Unified Payments Interface transactions exceeding two thousand rupees, while exempting small merchants receiving up to one lakh rupees monthly through quick response-based payments.
- The proposed levy received significant pushback from merchants, petrol pump dealers, and customers who feared that merchants would pass extra charges on to consumers via higher prices.
- Petrol pump dealers argued that the Merchant Discount Rate charge, combined with unrevised dealer commissions over several years, would severely squeeze their operating margins.
- A study by the Indian School of Business revealed that seventy percent of street vendors make supplier payments exceeding two thousand rupees, bringing those transactions under the proposed framework.
- The Indian School of Business survey also indicated that fifty-three percent of vendors in tier-one cities and forty-five percent in tier-two cities would reduce Unified Payments Interface acceptance if the charges apply.
- On October 13, the National Payments Corporation of India announced that its Unified Payments Interface and Services Steering Committee decided to defer implementation keeping the festive season in mind.
- Government sources reported that the decision to delay implementation was made in the Prime Minister's Office following strong appeals from traders.
- Praveen Khandelwal, founder and secretary-general of the Confederation of All India Traders and a Bharatiya Janata Party Lok Sabha member, welcomed the deferment to protect traders' interests and sustain digital payment momentum during the festive season.
Background
- The Unified Payments Interface platform has historically maintained a zero-charge structure for person-to-merchant transactions, driving massive adoption across India's digital economy.
- In mid-October, the National Payments Corporation of India formally announced the deferment of the zero-point-four percent Merchant Discount Rate that was originally scheduled to take effect on October 15.
Prelims facts and Mains angle for this issue are in the full SWAदेSH note.
Original report: The Hindu - Business/Economy