MarketIndia
Payments in India: UPI, cards, NACH and bank rails
- Currencies
- INR
- Key rails
- UPI · IMPS · NEFT
- Availability
- Confirmed at onboarding
Local payment ecosystem
How India pays
- UPI since 2016, round the clock
- NEFT and RTGS 24x7
- NACH mandates and BBPS bills
Payment methods and rails
The rails behind everyday payments
| Rail or method | Type | Where | What to know |
|---|---|---|---|
| UPI | Instant payments | India | NPCI's instant payment system, launched in 2016: pay by UPI ID, mobile number or QR code, authorised with a UPI PIN, 24x7.[1] |
| IMPS | Instant transfers | India | Real-time, account to account, round the clock; widely used for payouts. |
| NEFT | Bank transfers | India | Available on all days, round the clock, in half-hourly batches.[2] |
| RTGS | High-value transfers | India | Available 24x7x365 since 14 December 2020, for ₹2,00,000 and above.[3] |
| NACH | Recurring debits, bulk credits | India | Presented against mandates on schedule; used for EMIs, investments and salaries. |
| BBPS | Bill payments | India | The bill is fetched first, then paid, with a BBPS reference. |
Rails described as they operate in the market. Which methods LILPE connects for your business is confirmed during onboarding.
Currency
- INRIndian rupee
Settlement
Settlement runs per method and provider, commonly within one or two banking days, faster only where the provider supports it. Your settlement cycle is confirmed during onboarding.
Routing considerations
Orchestrating payments in India
- Customer in IndiaLocal methods and cards
LILPEOne API and dashboard- Routing engineRules, health, cost
- ProvidersServing India, as connected
- Local railsUPI, IMPS
UPI health by provider
Route UPI to the provider with the best recent success rate; pause one that starts timing out.
Mandates stay put
Recurring charges stay on the provider that holds the card token or mandate.
Payout rail by amount
IMPS, NEFT, RTGS or UPI, picked by amount and beneficiary type, or set per request.
Merchant use cases
Who sells and pays in India
D2C and e-commerce
UPI-first checkout with cards and netbanking, and retries when a provider struggles.
Lenders and NBFCs
Collections on mandates and disbursals to verified accounts.
Marketplaces and platforms
Collections, seller payouts and reconciliation in one place.
India products
Everything Indian businesses collect, pay and verify
Each page explains how the product works and what to check. Availability for your business is confirmed during onboarding.
Collect Payments
UPI, mandates, card tokenisation and in-store collection.
Banking & Payouts
Accounts, salaries, prepaid cards and virtual accounts.
Recharge & Bill Payments
BBPS bill payments, recharges and FASTag.
Verification & KYC
Aadhaar, PAN, GST, bank account and business verification.
- KYC & Identity VerificationLayered identity checks for onboarding
- Bank Account VerificationConfirm an account before you pay it
- Penny Drop VerificationConfirm a bank account with a real ₹1 transfer
- Penny-less VerificationCheck bank accounts without moving money
- PAN VerificationCheck a PAN and the name behind it
- Aadhaar VerificationConsent-driven identity checks
- KYB — Business VerificationConfirm the legal entity is real, not just the person
- GST VerificationCheck a GSTIN’s status and legal name
Lending & Financial Services
Credit products from regulated lenders and issuers.
Enterprise Infrastructure
API banking, BaaS, BC programmes and escrow.
Banking ecosystem
Built for India's banking and payment rails
Logos are trademarks of their respective owners and are shown to illustrate the banking ecosystem. They don't indicate a partnership or endorsement.
Regulation
The frameworks Indian payments operate under
Regulated services are delivered through licensed partner banks and institutions. Details of LILPE's security controls, audits and certifications are shared during partner and merchant due diligence.
Compliance & security- RBI directions for payment system participants and payment aggregators
- NPCI operating guidelines for UPI, IMPS, NACH and BBPS
- KYC / AML / CFT obligations under the PMLA and RBI's KYC Master Direction
- Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023
Integration approach
Add a market without a new integration
- 01
Tell us your markets
Where you sell, the methods customers expect and your volumes.
- 02
Providers confirmed
We confirm which providers, methods and settlement options are available for your business.
- 03
Integrate once
One request pattern and one webhook stream, tested in the sandbox.
- 04
Go live, then expand
Adding or switching a provider needs no change to your code.
Availability and settlement options are confirmed during onboarding.
LILPE Global Presence
Where to find LILPE in India
LILPE office
- India
Bengaluru Office
21, Parangi Palaya, Sector 2,HSR Layout, Bengaluru,Karnataka 560102
FAQ
India questions
Which payment methods can Indian customers use at checkout?
UPI, cards, netbanking and wallets, with pay later and EMI where a connected provider supports it. Which methods are enabled for your business is confirmed during onboarding.
How fast is settlement in India?
It depends on the method and the provider: commonly one or two banking days, faster only where the provider supports it. Your settlement cycle is confirmed during onboarding.
Are NEFT and RTGS available on holidays?
Yes. Per RBI's FAQs, NEFT runs on all days in half-hourly batches and RTGS has been available 24x7x365 since 14 December 2020. Provider settlement may still count banking days.
Sources
Researched 7 October 2026. Market facts describe the payment systems, not LILPE's connections.
Guides
Guides and explainers
- UPIWhat Is UPI? A Complete Beginner's Guide to India's Instant PaymentsUPI lets you send and receive money instantly from your bank account using just a phone, a UPI ID or a QR code, at any hour. What UPI stands for, how a payment actually moves, what you need to start, the ways to pay and get paid, what it costs, its limits, and how to stay safe.Read the guide
- ComplianceRBI's Payment Aggregator Regulations, Explained for MerchantsRBI's Master Direction on payment aggregators (15 September 2025) sets how the businesses that collect and settle your money must work. Here's what it means for merchants, in plain language.Read the guide
- PaymentsMDR Explained: What Merchants Pay on UPI, Cards and RuPay, and What Changes on 15 October 2026The merchant discount rate is the fee a business pays on each digital payment. Here's how it works for UPI, debit and credit cards, why some payments have carried zero MDR since 2020, and exactly what NPCI's new UPI MDR means from 15 October 2026.Read the guide
- BankingIMPS vs NEFT vs RTGS vs UPI: Which Bank Transfer Should You Use?IMPS, NEFT, RTGS and UPI all move money from one bank account to another, but they differ in limits, speed, how failures are handled and what they cost. The current rules from RBI and NPCI side by side, where UPI fits, worked examples, and a simple way to choose for each payment.Read the guide
Expanding into India?
Tell us where you sell and which providers you use today. We'll confirm what's available and show you the setup on LILPE.