Indians Travelling to the UAE Can Now Use PhonePe to Make Payments Through UPI

PhonePe, a leading digital payments platform, has recently expanded its Unified Payments Interface (UPI) services to the United Arab Emirates (UAE), offering Indian travelers the ease of making payments at various locations across the UAE.

This initiative has been facilitated through a partnership with Dubai-based Mashreq Bank, enabling transactions at Mashreq's Neopay terminals located in retail stores, dining outlets, and tourist attractions.

Streamlining Payments for Indian Travelers

This collaboration between PhonePe and Mashreq Bank is part of a broader effort to extend UPI's reach beyond Indian borders, aligning with government plans for international expansion of this payment system.

By allowing payments through the PhonePe app, users can scan QR codes at Neopay terminals, thereby bypassing the need for international bank cards. The transactions will display the exchange rate and show the debit amount in Indian Rupees, simplifying the payment process for Indian tourists in the UAE.

Ritesh Pai, CEO of International Payments at PhonePe, expressed optimism about this development, stating, "UAE is one of the most popular destinations, with millions of Indian visitors every year. This collaboration opens doors to seamless transactions, ensuring a smoother and more enjoyable journey for visitors."

Enhancing Financial Transactions

Beyond facilitating easier payments for travelers and everyday purchases, PhonePe is set to introduce inward remittance services in the UAE. This service, pending activation of the transaction corridor, will use the UPI infrastructure to make money transfers more straightforward, eliminating the need for bank account numbers and IFSC codes.

This move by PhonePe is not the company's first venture into international markets. UPI's global presence already includes countries such as Singapore, Canada, Oman, Saudi Arabia, France, Sri Lanka, and Nepal, marking a significant step in the digital payment platform's growth and the global adoption of UPI services.

With these developments, PhonePe aims to not only simplify financial transactions for Indian travelers in the UAE but also to pave the way for more efficient and hassle-free international money transfers, leveraging the robust UPI system that has revolutionized digital payments in India.