IPO-bound PhonePe nears 10B monthly UPI transactions
What's the story
PhonePe, India's leading Unified Payments Interface (UPI) app, is on the verge of hitting a major milestone. The Bengaluru-based company processed 9.8 billion transactions in December, according to data from the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI). This accounts for over 45% of all UPI payments in the country. The surge comes just as PhonePe prepares for its initial public offering (IPO) later this month.
Financial growth
PhonePe's transaction value and user base
In December, PhonePe also recorded transactions worth ₹13.6 lakh crore. The company, which is owned by Walmart, has more than 200 million active UPI users. It has filed draft papers with market regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) for a mega IPO via the confidential pre-filing route and is looking to raise around ₹12,000 crore ($1.35 billion).
Competitor comparison
Google Pay's performance in December
Google Pay, one of PhonePe's main competitors, recorded 7.3 billion transactions worth ₹9.5 lakh crore in December. The app had a market share of 34% last month. However, both PhonePe and Google Pay are well above the NPCI's target to reduce the market share of a single UPI app below 30%. Despite this, no action has been taken yet due to potential user inconvenience issues with implementing such rules.
Market impact
UPI's dominance in India's digital transactions
UPI has become India's default retail payment rail, hitting 21.6 billion transactions and ₹28 lakh crore in a single month. The platform accounts for over 85% of all digital transactions in the country. Despite newer entrants like Navi and Flipkart's super.money gaining market share over the last couple of years, PhonePe, Google Pay, and Paytm still dominate the market with a combined share of approximately 88.3% as of July 2025.