Tashkent
Indian travellers visiting Uzbekistan will soon be able to make instant merchant payments through the Unified Payments Interface (UPI), after NPCI International Payments Limited (NIPL) signed a commercial agreement with the National Interbank Processing Centre JSC (NIPC), operator of Uzbekistan’s HUMO payment system.
The agreement, signed on August 30 during Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s bilateral visit to Uzbekistan, expands UPI’s international reach and enables Indian users to scan Uzbekistan’s national interoperable QR code, UZQR, using their UPI-enabled applications.
The partnership follows approvals from the Reserve Bank of India and the Central Bank of Uzbekistan. The Uzbek central bank has designated HUMO as NIPL’s authorised partner for cross-border merchant acceptance.
Through integration with the Central Bank of Uzbekistan’s mandated Unified National QR infrastructure, UPI users are expected to gain broad acceptance across retail, hospitality and service merchants. Indian tourists, business travellers and students will be able to make person-to-merchant payments directly from their Indian bank accounts.
The arrangement is expected to reduce dependence on international cards and cash while easing foreign-exchange payment friction. It also marks another step in digital public infrastructure cooperation between the two countries and supports their economic engagement.
The development comes as India continues expanding UPI-linked payment systems overseas. The Maldives last month became the ninth country to announce the successful go-live of integration between its Maldives Instant Payment System, Favara, and UPI.
The Uzbekistan agreement adds another destination to India’s growing cross-border digital payments network, making transactions simpler for Indians travelling, studying or conducting business there.
