[pcx]

VPA is used for discoverability across UPI clients. Phone numbers can be used for discoverability among users of a single client. For eg: foobar@icici on Google Pay & baz@hdfc on PhonePe can transact with each other, but can't use phone numbers. But [phone] & [phone] can discover & transact only if they are both on either PhonePe or Google Pay or any other client application. QR Codes were initially client-specific too, but now they are scannable across apps.

UPI truly is a revolution. I can have a 6Rs chai tea (8 cents) from a road side tea stall and pay using UPI with zero transaction fees.

[signal11]

> UPI truly is a revolution. I can have a 6Rs chai tea (8 cents) from a road side tea stall and pay using UPI with zero transaction fees.

The main benefit of UPI is that it works really well for small amounts, e.g. the INR 6 tea. Such small transcations were traditionally too small/uneconomical for Visa/Mastercard.

However as the transaction size grows, say you're buying a laptop for INR 50,000 -- that's when the protections Visa/Mastercard build in against fraud start helping you and UPI's "no transaction fee" value proposition also starts looking like "no accountability".

Interestingly, India has a home-grown Visa/MC alternative called RuPay, which also waives transaction fees for small amounts and is a credible alternative to Visa/MC.

Unfortunately Indian startups have been obsessed with pushing e-wallets (PayTM et al) or direct electronic cash transfers (UPI) because it benefits them -- as the transaction size goes up it certainly doesn't protect the consumer.

[bahularora]

You can have phone_number@paytm or phone_number@bank as you vpa is you prefer that, also UPI API, you can search users with phone number so if i want to send money to a friend and I know his no I can search his VPA/s