Nationwide UPI outage disrupts digital payments across major platforms

Fourth major technical snag in a month raises concerns over UPI reliability

Unified Payments Interface (UPI) services experienced a significant nationwide outage on Saturday, affecting users across major platforms like Paytm, PhonePe, and Google Pay. This marks the fourth such technical disruption within a single month, raising concerns about the resilience of India’s leading digital payment system.

Disruptions reported across the country

Outage tracking platform DownDetector recorded over 1,200 reports by 12 PM, with users citing payment failures (66%) and money transfer issues (34%). Initial problems were noted around 11:26 a.m., peaking shortly thereafter. The disruptions appeared to affect multiple banks and apps, indicating a systemic issue within the UPI network.

Users across India voiced their frustrations on social media, with many highlighting the inconvenience caused during essential transactions. One user posted, “UPI is down again today… there should be prior intimation in case of planned outages.” Another user shared a personal inconvenience: “I wasn’t carrying cash and was stuck during an auto fare payment. We need a zero-downtime UPI infra.”

NPCI acknowledges technical issue

The National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI), which manages the UPI infrastructure, confirmed the issue and stated that it was working to resolve it. In a post on X (formerly Twitter), NPCI said:
“NPCI is currently facing intermittent technical issues, leading to partial UPI transaction declines. We are working to resolve the issue and regret the inconvenience caused.”

Despite this acknowledgment, no timeline or specific cause for the outage has been shared yet.

Recurring disruptions raise concerns

This is the fourth notable outage in recent weeks. On March 26 and March 31, UPI users faced similar troubles, with NPCI attributing those to “intermittent technical issues” and “bank-side delays” during fiscal year-end operations. Another glitch on April 2 was blamed on network latency.

Why UPI matters to India’s economy

UPI has become the backbone of India’s digital economy. In January alone, the platform processed over 16.99 billion transactions, totaling more than Rs.23.48 lakh crore—a record for any month. According to the Finance Ministry, UPI now accounts for 80% of retail digital payments in the country.

Given its widespread use, disruptions not only inconvenience individuals but also impact small businesses and larger economic activities. The frequency of recent outages underscores the need for stronger digital infrastructure, real-time monitoring, and proactive communication to maintain public trust in the system.

What users should do

Until services are fully restored, users are advised to:

• Avoid initiating new UPI transactions.
• Keep alternative payment options available.
• Monitor official updates from NPCI and UPI platforms.

For all the latest updates, download PGurus App.

The post Nationwide UPI outage disrupts digital payments across major platforms appeared first on PGurus.