India explores Alipay+ integration for cross-border payments

The Indian government and the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) are in talks with Ant International to link the Unified Payments Interface (UPI) with the Alipay+ network. According to a Reuters report, the integration will expand India’s instant payment, allowing people to pay overseas merchants using the same UPI apps like Gpay.

As of now, RBI, the finance ministry, and NPCI have not provided confirmation about the ongoing Alipay+ integration plans. On the other hand, Singapore-based Ant International, which manages Alipay+, has also not provided any statement. Hence, the information surrounding the expansion remains scarce.

If the rumours are true, the Alipay+ integration to UPI will remove the requirement for foreign currency cards or local SIM-linked wallets.

Indian tourists will be able to make payments across borders, using their preferred UPI app across Southeast Asia, the Middle East, and Europe. Alipay currently has over 1.8 billion users and over 150 million merchants listed on the platform, which is quite massive.

In comparison, the Indian UPI system works in a few regions like Singapore, the UAE, France, and Sri Lanka via bilateral agreements. According to NPCI statistics, UPI has processed 18.92 billion transactions as of January 2026, withan average daily transaction volume of  700.8 million. In terms of numbers, UPI recoded transactions amounted to Rs 24.39 lakh crore in the same month.