Transactions on the Unified Payment Interface (UPI) surged 52% year-on-year in terms of volume and 40% in terms of value in the first six months of 2024, according to a report.

While the volume rose to 78.97 billion in the January-June period of 2024, the value climbed to Rs 116.63 trillion.  

According to India Digital Payments Report for the first half of 2024, payment technology service provider Worldline said that UPI continues to rule the payment market and is rapidly expanding its reach.

"The number of UPI transactions rose significantly from 8.03 billion in January 2023 to 13.9 billion by June 2024. This growth in volume was matched by an increase in transaction value, which climbed from Rs 12.98 trillion in January 2023 to an impressive Rs 20.07 trillion in June 2024. 

"When comparing H1 2024 to the same period in 2023, UPI transaction volume saw a substantial increase of 52%, rising from 51.9 billion to 78.97 billion," the report said. 

The value of transactions grew 40%, increasing from Rs 83.16 trillion to Rs 116.63 trillion.

In terms of volume and value contribution, PhonePe emerged as the top UPI app, followed by Google Pay and Paytm. 

However, average ticket size (ATS) of UPI transactions saw a decline of 8%, the report said. The average ticket size (ATS) of all UPI transactions in H1 2023 was Rs 1,603, while it dropped to Rs 1,478 in 1H 2024, it noted. ATS consists of person-to-person (P2P) and person-to-merchant (P2M) transactions.

ATS in P2P transactions registered an almost flat year-on-year rise from Rs 2,812 to Rs 2,836. ATS for P2M transactions dropped from Rs 667 to Rs 643, representing a 4% reduction. "This significant rise in UPI transactions, particularly in the person-to-merchant (P2M) segment, further cements its position as the preferred method for micro-transactions, demonstrating long-term sustainability and even movement to larger transactions in the coming years," Worldline India CEO Ramesh Narasimhan said.

Grocery stores, restaurants, service stations, clothing stores, government services, pharmacies, and hospitals were the most visited in-store merchant categories in the first half of 2024. According to the research, they collectively accounted for almost 53% of the overall transaction value and 68% of the transaction volume. 

E-commerce, gaming, utilities, government services, and financial services made up around 81% of the overall transaction volume and 74% of the total transaction value in the online industry. Furthermore, the report revealed that between January 2023 and June 2024, the number of POS (point of sale) terminals increased 17%, rising from 7.65 million to 8.96 million.