RBI: Digital payments up 39.6% in Sept 2021

The RBI’s Digital Payment Index, which shows the deepening of payments through digital modes in India, rose by 39.64 per cent to 304.06 in September 2021 against 217.74 in the year-ago month.

Constructed with March 2018 as the base period – DPI score for March 2018 is set at 100 – the RBI-DPI was 173.49 in September 2019. Digital payments increased after Covid hit the nation in March 2020 and the government and the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) announced several measures to boost digital payments.

The RBI-DPI comprises five broad parameters that enable measurement of deepening and penetration of digital payments in the country over different time periods, viz. payment enablers (with 25 per cent weight), payment infrastructure-demand-side factors (10 per cent), payment infrastructure-supply-side factors (15 per cent), payment performance (45 per cent) and consumer centricity (5 per cent). These parameters have sub-parameters which, in turn, consist of various measurable indicators.

The DPI for March 2019 and March 2020 work out to 153.47 and 207.84, respectively. The RBI said the DPI would be based on multiple parameters and will reflect accurately penetration of various digital payment modes.