India and Uzbekistan will link UPI and Humo payment systems.
Indian Foreign Secretary Sibi George announced that the agreement between NIPL and Humo will allow Indian tourists to use UPI apps in Uzbekistan within a year.
India and Uzbekistan have taken an initial step toward integrating their digital payment systems: an agreement between an Indian operator and the Uzbek payment system Humo will allow Indian tourists to use UPI apps in Uzbekistan. This was announced by Sibi George, Secretary (Western) of the Indian Ministry of External Affairs, at a press briefing following the Indian Prime Minister's state visit to Uzbekistan.
According to his statement, an agreement was recently signed between NPCI International Payments Limited (NIPL), the international arm of the Indian digital payment ecosystem, and the Uzbek payment system Humo. "This is a significant first step toward achieving greater interoperability between the payment ecosystems of our two countries," Sibi George emphasized.
The diplomat clarified that this agreement is planned to be implemented within a year, after which Indian tourists visiting Uzbekistan will be able to use UPI-enabled apps.
He noted that this agreement is part of a larger effort to expand banking cooperation and payment infrastructure in the context of elevating the relationship between the countries to a comprehensive strategic partnership, as well as the parties' agreement to reduce trade barriers and develop more efficient regional supply chains.
According to Sibi George, the implementation of such interoperability mechanisms will reduce Indian tourists' reliance on cash, currency exchange, or international cards when traveling to Uzbekistan.