Current Context: PhonePe launched UPI 123Pay on 31 August 2026 to enable feature-phone users to make UPI payments without internet access, helping expand digital payments and financial inclusion.
Key Points
- Launch: PhonePe introduced UPI 123Pay on 31 August 2026 for users who rely on feature phones rather than smartphones.
- Target Users: The service is aimed at India’s large base of 200 million+ feature-phone users.
- Internet Requirement: Users can make UPI transactions without mobile internet, making digital payments more accessible in low-connectivity areas.
- Payment Features: It supports person-to-person transfers and merchant payments, including Scan & Pay on supported camera-enabled feature phones.
- Security: Transactions are authorised using the user’s UPI PIN, similar to regular UPI payments.
- Significance: PhonePe became the first major TPAP to extend UPI payments to feature-phone users, strengthening financial inclusion.
- Future Objective: The initiative supports PhonePe’s broader goal of bringing millions of additional users into India’s digital-payment ecosystem.
Question:
Q1. PhonePe UPI 123Pay primarily enables which group to make UPI payments without internet access?a) Credit card users
b) International tourists
c) Feature-phone users
d) Only smartphone users
Answer: c) PhonePe launched UPI 123Pay on 31 August 2026 to enable feature-phone users to make UPI transactions without requiring a smartphone or internet connection, supporting wider financial inclusion.
