26-05-2025
What comes after UPI? Can BBPS and voice-led payments replicate its success
In a country of 1.4 billion people, developing the worldwide normalcy of digital banking through India's Unified Payments Interface (UPI) has been nothing less than transformational. UPI processed an unprecedented 19.78 billion transactions in March of 2025 for a total value of ₹ 24.77 trillion. The digital payment narrative in India is shifting radically, as the 'new normal' sets in. The direction of the future of India includes voice-led payment solutions and the Bharat Bill Payment System (BBPS).
This is not just the next chapter. It's a rewrite of the playbook.
When UPI launched in 2016, only a few had anticipated the kind of financial democratization it eventually unleashed. Today, with 11.5 billion transactions which take place in a single month (April 2024), UPI is undoubtedly the heartbeat of India's cashless economy. But while UPI simplifies peer-to-peer and merchant payments, BBPS is quietly transforming how India pays its bills.
'While UPI continues to break records, the future of digital payments in India lies in two parallel shifts—BBPS and voice-led interfaces,' says Sameer Mathur, Managing Director and Founder of Roinet Solution. 'BBPS has seen a 60% year-on-year surge in transaction value in FY24, now processing over 28 crore monthly bill payments across utilities, education, and taxes.'
That scale isn't just impressive—it's foundational. BBPS brings structure and interoperability to recurring payments, covering the long tail of Indian households who want their electricity, water, broadband, and school fees paid with a single tap. Its API-first, regulator-backed framework ensures that these payments are secure, standardized, and widely accessible.
But the most exciting innovation may not involve screens at all—it's the rise of voice-led payments, a game-changer for India's 700 million feature phone users.
Voice AI, now achieving up to 95% accuracy in regional languages, is turning spoken instructions into financial actions. Picture this: a farmer in rural Odisha pays his electricity bill using a simple voice command. A street vendor in Uttar Pradesh checks his BBPS payment status through a missed call. The digital divide begins to dissolve.
'With digital payments deeply ingrained in India's financial ecosystem, forward-thinking companies know the next wave of opportunity lies in accessible, inclusive platforms like Bharat BillPay—especially when combined with voice-led processing,' says Rohit Mahajan, Managing Partner and Founder of plutos ONE. 'New players like NPCI's Conversational Voice Payments and BBPS's BillPay Connect are empowering users to transact via voice commands or even missed calls, breaking digital barriers to inclusion.'
A tech-agnostic ecosystem is emerging and you can pay offline or pay with a QR code, a feature phone, a smart phone or a voice. This ecosystem, which is responsive to India's vast variety in connectivity, literacy, and access to devices, sees innovation as a necessity rather than an option.
This convergence of platform and interface is a mission and not a roadmap. Digital payments, according to some industry figures, will encompass every facet of society by 2029, from high-rises in Mumbai to tribal hamlets in Chhattisgarh.
BBPS and voice, as part of India's payment system, are extensions, multiples and reinforcements of UPI, and not replacements or alternatives. They see the world, collectively, as a future where all Indians can join the digital economy no matter their literacy level, language and device you are using.
UPI may have sparked the revolution—but BBPS and voice are building the republic.
