In this 21st-century world, the sweeping revolution that has transpired has been in the field of technology. Its reach has penetrated into society’s various crevices, leading to better connectivity between individuals segregated by time and space. It has been estimated that during the unfolding of this century less than 7% of the population had access to the internet but present statistics show that more than half of the population is on the Net. This unprecedented growth of tech can be attributed to the burgeoning of the smartphone industry so much so that presently every discrete household possesses one at most. Smartphones have facilitated the swift electronic transfer of data across the globe, resulting in major changes in how we conduct our lives. It has changed the way we search for knowledge since earlier a research scholar or any person for that matter had to visit various libraries and look through innumerable books for illustrations on a topic.

Secondly, connectivity has become all-powerful with the opening up of social media applications for instance WhatsApp, Facebook, Instagram, and the like. But behold, the innovation is not limited to acquiring knowledge at a click or connecting with old friends while sipping coffee thousands of miles away but the innumerable digital services that have arrived with the enhancement of technology. The demand for digital services has grown by heaps and bounds, especially during the pandemic.

Digital services affect each part of our lives starting from the way we eat to the way we pay our bills. These services have made our life in this postmodern era way easier and more comfortable. Irrespective of our physical location, digital financial services are important for improving our economic position. A few examples of digital financial services are e-commerce purchases, in-shop transactions, lending, saving, and insurance. One such service that has made financial transactions feasible from the comfort of our homes is the usage of Unified Payments Interface (UPI) which is a part of digital financial services in India. With the innovation of UPI, a digital payment service, one can pay from any geographical location while shopping, traveling, or any other bill payments with the ease of a click.

UPI transactions are sought after as they provide wide access to banking services using facilities like the smartphone whose broad outreach has been discussed. Technically, UPI is a bill payment system that allows people to link their bank account with the smartphone app and start hassle-free online payment. It is a safe and secure application that has been developed by the National Corporation of India (NPCI) as they partnered with the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) and the Indian Banks Association. As a new user, the prerequisites that you need are a smartphone, an active bank account, and your mobile number which must be active and linked to the said bank account.

One needs to download the UPI application from either the google application store or the iOS App store and then link the bank and account number by clicking the option, ‘Add/Link/Manage Bank Account.’ After linking your bank account, the next step would be to generate the UPI-PIN. UPI has become a unique platform because of numerous reasons, a few of which include the immediate safe and secure transfer of money via any mobile device, negates the hassle of cash on delivery, and provides a seamless single-click payment. The foremost aim of the UPI application is to promote a cashless economy through digital transactions. With its advent, customers can relax and sit back and not be concerned about carrying any physical form of money.

UPI Autopay is a new service introduced under UPI 2.0 which would enable customers to seamlessly pay recurring payments like EMIs, Digital subscriptions, Insurance Premiums, Investments, and so on. UPI Autopay is a payment service which assists people in paying their recurring bill payments automatically on a predetermined date. This facility allows users to permit e-mandate for facilitating payments such as OTT Subscriptions, utility bills, EMIs, mutual funds, and insurance premiums. It will aid users in setting their in-app purchases on auto debit mode. This feature would benefit customers as timely fees would keep penalties at bay, secondly, subscribers can customize bill payment options (such as monthly or quarterly), and thirdly they have the option to revoke pause, or modify payments with a click. UPI automatic payment liberates the individual in making his /her own financial decisions. Moreover, this service also benefits companies with timely payments. The digitalization of payments such as financial investments, bill payments, and OTT platforms is rapidly increasing the demand for recurring-based payments in India. Now with this automatic pay facility, the company aims towards the enhancement of customers’ convenience so that people can enjoy seamless services without any disruption.

Women are not only the central caregivers but can play a significant role in our ever-growing economy. A woman can not only take charge of the children but the nation itself. She is doubly marginalized- financially bereft of any support and pushed into a society where patriarchy dictates the rules. The marginalized section of society has hardly any resources to meet its day-to-day needs. in 2017, as many as 190 million people over the age of 15 does not have a bank account. Arth Digital is an impact-led fintech company, that provides flexible and affordable financial services with a focus on extending collateral-free business credit to micro MSMEs across India because the main aim of our company is on making Micro Financial services accessible to the marginalized section of the population. We provide financial services and livelihood support to unbanked and underserved micro-entrepreneurs with a special focus on women-owned businesses from the remotest corners of the country.