Bankers flag risks in new voice-enabled payment feature on India's UPI

India’s rapidly developing instant payments system, the Unified Payments Interface, drove digitisation in the world’s most populous country. Now, risks need to be managed for its new voice-enabled feature to ensure further inclusion, according to bankers. 

The government-backed feature called Hello UPI will allow users to pay via apps and calls in Hindi and English, and will soon roll out services in other regional languages. The launch of this artificial intelligence-powered service seeks to widen access of digital payments to more people, including the elderly, though adoption could be tentative at the start.  

There is currently no “wild demand” for such a feature, though the proposition is an exciting one, Akhil Handa, chief digital officer at Bank of Baroda, said at a fintech conference last week .