Zimbabwe is exploring the use of technology underpinning India’s Unified Payments Interface to develop a real-time national payments network, with discussions between the country’s central bank and NPCI International Payments Ltd potentially concluding by October 31, according to a Bloomberg report.

The proposed platform would provide shared payments infrastructure connecting banks, mobile-money operators, fintech companies and other payment providers, allowing transactions to be processed in real time, Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe Governor John Mushayavanhu told Bloomberg in emailed responses.

The plan would involve Zimbabwe using UPI-based technology to develop its domestic payments infrastructure, rather than simply enabling Indian travellers to make UPI payments in the country.

Mushayavanhu said the proposed network could reduce transaction costs and speed up the movement of money. It could also offer an alternative to card payments for small-value domestic transactions through account-to-account transfers and allow banks to provide lower-cost payment services to merchants.

The shared infrastructure could also allow banks and fintech companies to develop new financial products, the governor said.

Greater adoption of digital payments could provide Zimbabwe with more data on economic activity among small and medium-sized enterprises.

Mushayavanhu said this could help the government better assess the contribution of such businesses to the economy. Cross-border payments could followThe initial focus is expected to be on domestic payments, although Zimbabwe could eventually use the infrastructure for cross-border transactions and remittances. The discussions come as several African countries are developing digital payment systems aimed at reducing transaction costs, improving interoperability and lowering reliance on cash.

For NPCI International, an agreement with Zimbabwe would add to its efforts to take Indian payments technology to overseas markets.NPCI International was established in 2020 as a wholly owned subsidiary of the National Payments Corporation of India. Its mandate includes expanding payment systems such as UPI and RuPay internationally.UPI-based systems in other countriesZimbabwe would not be the first African country to explore UPI-based technology for domestic payments infrastructure.NPCI International signed an agreement with the Bank of Namibia in May 2024 to support the development of a real-time payments system based on UPI technology.

The proposed system was intended to improve interoperability among payment providers and enable instant payments between individuals and merchants. Similar agreements for UPI-based payment infrastructure have also been signed in Peru and Trinidad and Tobago. Separately, UPI itself has expanded into overseas markets, allowing Indian users to make payments at participating merchants outside India. This is different from exporting the underlying technology, where a country develops its own domestic instant-payment system using a UPI-based model.UPI processes billions of transactionsUPI has expanded significantly since its launch in 2016, when 21 banks participated in the system.

According to NPCI data, 752 banks were live on UPI as of August 2026.

The platform processed around 24.5 billion transactions worth ₹29.82 lakh crore during the month. Indian government data cited in the Bloomberg report showed that UPI accounted for about 49% of global real-time payment transaction volumes in 2025. The government said in August that UPI was operational in 11 countries. The Reserve Bank of India has previously said it is working with NPCI International to expand UPI to 20 countries, with the programme targeted for completion by 2028-29.