UPI merchant payments dip in Feb; brokers see 28% fall in transaction value
31 Mar 2026, 02:58 PMThe overall value of the merchant category-wise purchases via UPI fell to Rs 7.72 lakh crore in February across 12,795.78 million transactions as compared to Rs 8.41 lakh crore in January across 13,608.10 million transactions.
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The value of securities brokers and dealer transactions via the unified payments interface (UPI) declined around 28% month-on-month to Rs 58,625.78 crore in February from Rs 81,039.50 crore in January.
The overall value of the merchant category-wise purchases via UPI fell to Rs 7.72 lakh crore in February across 12,795.78 million transactions as compared to Rs 8.41 lakh crore in January across 13,608.10 million transactions, according to data released by the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI).
Groceries and supermarkets, which account for the largest share, recorded 3,283.85 million transactions worth Rs 74,127.95 crore in February versus 3,419.81 million transactions worth Rs 76,833.09 crore in January.
The value of debt collections via the UPI declined to Rs 58,678.29 crore in February from Rs 60,373.41 crore in January.
Digital gold purchase via the UPI fell to Rs 3,032.41 crore in February as compared to Rs 3,926.47 crore in January.
Men's, women's and children's uniforms and commercial clothing saw 68.2 million transactions worth Rs 7,408.05 crore in February versus 78.59 million transactions worth Rs 8,099.34 crore in January; and family clothing shops category witnessed 75.04 million transactions worth Rs 6,605.23 crore in February against 87.51 million transactions worth Rs 6,808.89 crore in January.
Online marketplaces witnessed 114.52 million transactions worth Rs 6,461.56 crore via UPI payments in February as compared to 116.51 million transactions worth Rs 7,009.66 crore in January.
Fast food restaurants recorded 1,382.81 million transactions worth Rs 15,639.68 crore in February versus 1,502.57 million transactions worth Rs 17,483.76 crore in January; and eating places and restaurants saw 1,165.56 million UPI transactions worth Rs 19,070.54 crore in February compared to 1,258.98 million worth Rs 21,184.95 crore in January.
Service stations registered 633.99 million transactions worth Rs 38,811.08 crore in February versus 658.84 million transactions worth Rs 40,053.68 crore in January; utilities recorded 155.91 million transactions worth Rs 19,139.07 crore in February compared to 161.56 million transactions worth Rs 19,774.93 crore in January; and telecommunications logged 794.75 million transactions worth Rs 20,715.85 crore in February versus 878.66 million transactions worth Rs 22,840.64 crore in January.
Electronics shops saw 81.95 million transactions worth Rs 10,322.74 crore in February compared to 86.03 million transactions worth Rs 10,923.26 crore in January. Government services category recorded 119 million UPI transactions worth Rs 9,573.58 crore in February versus 122.73 million transactions worth Rs 10,192.71 crore in January.
Drug stores and pharmacies recorded 294.66 million transactions worth Rs 11,921.67 crore in February compared to 324.06 million transactions worth Rs 12,886.10 crore in January.
Overall UPI volumes for the month of February was at 20.39 billion transactions worth Rs 26.84 lakh crore as compared to 21.7 billion transactions worth Rs 28.33 lakh crore in January.
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