My cash would be ruined by UPI
I was stood at a Chai stall with a warm (now going cold) cup of tea (£20) in my hand and my phone at 6% battery.
He directed me to scan his QR code. I did so, entered my PIN, and it worked! Then about 2 seconds later, my phone died.
Then I thought, “When did I stop using cash?” I can’t really tell you when I just stopped. It was just one of those things.
This is not a sponsored post. I’m trying to figure out why I became a huge fan and why it really is so good.
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Speed
Everybody says it’s fast. Well… yes. Before UPI I used to do my net banking. I’d often add my beneficiary and wait for activation. Sometimes it could take hours to activate. Other times it would just not go through and I would have to try again.
What changed was that I don’t ever plan to pay. My landlord/flatmate/dad would say “send it when you can.” Since having UPI, there is no “when you can,” as it only takes 9 seconds.
Small things but helps with how I pay for [rent/bills/etc]
Made me stop hating small payments
Before we could pay for small things such as pens (£10), parking (£30), auto man (£15).
With cash we would always get annoyed at these small payments. I’d hand over my £100 note and he’d moan. We’d both do some maths. However with UPI there is no longer any of that. No one would have “no change” now. Seems silly but we had so many small arguments weekly.
The veg lady
This one really got me.
The lady I buy my vegetables from in [area] would never have a card reader. Why would she? They can be costly; you need internet, and to her it wouldn’t help. However, putting a printed QR code onto a steel box is free!
She says business is easier? She doesn’t need to write things down in a book as much? Ask her. It only takes 30 seconds and will be the best paragraph of your story.
What I noticed was that she is now receiving her money into a bank account. Her payments are recorded. If she ever needs a loan, this can help her. However, with cash, there is no record, which is great for privacy but not great if she ever needs proof she’s working.
No more issues with splitting bills
We all know the issue with paying. “I’ll pay now, you send me later.” They never send you. I’ve lost real money from this. And a couple of my friendships have gone a bit chilly because of £800.
Now everyone pays their share. It’s done before we even get our desserts. I’d pay a fee for this feature. But I don’t, so it’s a bit silly.
Taught me a lesson
This was unexpected. One evening I was looking at my payment history and realised I’d spent [real amount] on food deliveries just in one month. I didn’t feel like I was spending that much. With cash, I would never know. But with UPI, I have the receipts, and they were embarrassing.
This is a free budgeting lesson! However, most people won’t look at the tab. I didn’t for a while.
Drawbacks
It’s not perfect. I’m not going to lie.
Sometimes payments don’t go through. Sometimes you’ll lose money from your account but the other person won’t get it. You’ll be refreshing your bank app like a fool. It will usually go back through but it feels like forever. I had this happen to me at [real time].
You can overspend easily. When it feels like nothing to pay you’ll spend more. I know this about myself and I still do.
Scams. People will receive a collect request and agree to it. Think! You will never enter your PIN to receive money. If someone calls you saying they’re from your bank and are in a rush, hang up. I have had 3 calls this year. If anything seems odd, report it to your bank immediately. If you’ve lost any money, report it to the cybercrime helpline.
If your phone dies and you have no cash, you’re stuck. I now have a folded £100 note in my phone case. I’ve had this for [amount of time] and have used it [number of times]. It’s embarrassing but works.
Conclusion
I don’t think UPI is magical. It’s basic. Boring basic. But it mostly works.
I’ve seen my chai seller, veg lady and bike fixer on the highway all receive the same payment from the same phone. None of them needed teaching. This is rare. Most tech requires you to adapt. This just got out of the way.
Curious to know where the weirdest place you’ve paid with UPI was. Mine was. Let me know below!
Nobody told me was originally published in Coinmonks on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.