In a unique incident that has been able to turn the attention of national and international media, the German Federal Minister for Digital and Transport, Volker Wissing has astoundingly availed himself of India’s progress in the field of financial technology by using the UPI or User Payment Interface while he bought vegetables from a roadside bazaar in the Indian union territory and capital of New Delhi. The incident took place on 21^st August this year and has garnered praise from both national and international media as well as the Embassy of Germany in India. It was reported from private sources that the German Federal Minister for Digital and Transport, Volker Wissing has termed the entire experience a fantastic one to his private sources and has been left impressed as well as inspired by the entire process of digital payment. The Embassy of Germany in India has taken to the social media account Twitter to praise the progress of India in the field of digital infrastructures and it attributed to the story of success that the country is experiencing at this moment.

The Digitally Impressed Minister

On the 20^th of August this year, a video surfaced on the social media account of Twitter of the Embassy of Germany that showed the Minister of Digital and Transport buying groceries while on his visit to the union territory of the capital of India.  The Minister had paid a visit to New Delhi after completing an international conference in Bangalore for a Digital Ministers Conference on the 19^th of August this year. On being face to face with the impressive financial technology that the country had to offer him, the Minister was quite ‘fascinated’ with the magic in terms of settling large payments easily and quickly with the help of the User Payment Interface or UPI.

The Embassy of Germany in India was quick to respond to the entire incident through their social media account, terming the entire incident as an impressive one and even praising the achievement in the field of financial technology that India has been able to achieve under the leadership of the Narendra Damodardas Modi government. The tweet read, “One of India’s stories of success is digital infrastructure. UPI enables everybody to make transactions in seconds. Millions of Indians use it. Federal Minister for Digital and Transport @Wissing was able to experience the simplicity of UPI payments first-hand and is very fascinated!”

The Reaction from Proud Netizens

Almost every netizen in India as well as living in other parts of the world have prided themselves on the financial development that the country has witnessed over the years under the leadership of the Narendra Damodardas Modi government. The Twitter account of the Embassy of Germany was flooded with praises for Volker Wissing to consider himself to be a part of the digital revolution of India, especially, in the field of financial technology and transactions.  “Thank you for being part of India’s digital economic revolution. Keep sharing and using,” wrote one user. The huge adulation that India has received for its innovation in the field of financial digitization has created a spark of immense national pride and patriotism among the people in the country as well as those that are residing in other parts of the world. The officials from Germany have not just lauded the achievement of the country on the technological front, especially, in terms of cashless transactions but also have claimed that this incident would be serving as an inspiration for other countries on the international forum. “It will be a blessing for German merchants and shopgoers in Germany, which are struggling with cash-only transactions,” feels another user from Germany. If implemented properly, it could be a revolutionizing effect for the country in terms of revamping its entire system of purchase transactions. “UPI goes Global! when is Germany joining the UPI platform?” was one inquisitive question that is hoped to be answered by German officials soon.

Hopeful Collaborations and Inspiration

The video of the German minister availing an Indian-made technology to make cashless payments has become the talk of the town in many nations that have not yet tasted the magic of settling cash transactions without having to have paper notes with them. The use of digital currency has been almost on the rise in India. The idea of going totally cash free at the time of carrying out transactions crept into the minds of the government when social distancing and minimal physical contact were being preached to avoid the spreading of the pathogen and the disease. Digital methods of payment, such as UPI, GPay, PhonePay and PayTM have sort of revolutionized the entire market of making financial transactions in an online mode.

Such has been the craze of the revolution that even other countries have decided to collaborate with India and experience the fun of going digital, like that of France. During his speech on the day of the independence of India, the Prime Minister announced that “India and France have agreed to use UPI in France. In the coming days, it will begin from the Eiffel Tower, which means Indian tourists will now be able to pay in rupees.” This would help the tourists from India visiting the memorable location in France to carry out their payments in the Indian currency of rupees. Once the transaction would be done digitally, Euros equal to that amount would get deducted and transferred to the other person digitally. This would seriously revolutionize the transaction and payments market of France once and forever. This deal has been signed by the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) by signing a Memorandum of Understanding with the Lyra Network of France that would enable the UPI digital payment to function easily in France. This has been followed by the Memorandum of Understanding signed between the National Payments Corporation Of India (NPCI) and the PayNow system in Singapore to facilitate the people from both countries to quickly execute transactions on a cross-border basis.

This underscores an important endorsement of the digital talent of India in the field of carrying out financial transactions that have highlighted before the world the prowess, viability and safety of the infrastructure for the execution of digital transactions. It has reinstated the position of the country as a global path breaker in the digital revolution and has opened options for several foreign collaborations in the era of a digitally advancing world.