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India’s UPI Breakthrough — Global Benchmark in Product Innovation
In the rapidly evolving digital payments landscape, few innovations have made as profound an impact as India’s Unified Payments Interface (UPI).
Introduced by the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) in 2016, UPI has transformed the way Indians transact, making digital payments as simple as sending a text message.
With over 10 billion transactions in a month and adoption spreading globally, UPI stands as a testament to India’s technological prowess and policy innovation.
As a product manager, it’s impossible to overlook the strategic brilliance behind UPI’s success and the lessons it offers for building scalable, user-centric products.
Let’s explore the UPI journey from a product management lens, analyzing its core value propositions, growth strategies, and future potential.
1. The Problem UPI Solved: A Product Manager’s Dream Use Case
Before UPI, India’s payment ecosystem was fragmented. Digital payments required multiple steps, different apps, and cumbersome authentication processes. The pain points were clear: