Google Pay Introduces Aadhaar Verification for UPI Activation
From today, Google Pay users can sign up for UPI through the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) using Aadhaar. By using the Aadhaar-based UPI onboarding process, Google Pay users can set their UPI PIN without a debit card, which is expected to facilitate the creation of UPI IDs and enable digital payments. The aim is to promote financial inclusion. This functionality is currently accessible to bank account holders of supported banks.
Users who wish to join UPI through Aadhaar must ensure that (a) their phone number is registered with UIDAI and the bank is the same and (b) their bank account is linked with Aadhaar.
3 step process
In Google Pay, users can choose either a Debit card or Aadhaar-based UPI subscription. If they choose Aadhaar, users need to enter the first six digits of their Aadhaar number to start the process.
To complete the authentication phase, users enter the OTPs received from UIDAI and the bank.
After this, their bank completes the process and they can set up their UPI PIN.
Customers can then use the Google Pay app to make payments or check their balance. After the user enters the first six digits of the Aadhaar number, it is sent to UIDAI through NPCI for verification.
Google says it does not store the Aadhaar number and only acts as a facilitator in sharing the same with NPCI for validation.
Sharath Bulusu, Head of Product Management, Google, “We are happy to announce UPI activation with Aadhaar-based OTP authentication in Google Pay, bringing simplicity and convenience to our users. This feature is in line with the government’s vision to promote financial inclusion and further strengthens our efforts to promote digital payment penetration in India.”
