PhonePe’s UAE push is more than UPI: What its first overseas licences mean

Digital payments platform PhonePe today said it has secured in-principle approval (IPA) from the Central Bank of the UAE (CBUAE) for two licences, following the successful completion of the initial regulatory due diligence.

These are PhonePe’s first overseas licences, and will allow the fintech company to expand operations in the Middle Eastern country, the release added.

Ritesh Pai, CEO and Executive Director, International Payments at PhonePe in the statement said, “As the UAE advances toward an interconnected, digital-first economy, PhonePe aims to be a committed, long-term partner supporting its evolving ecosystem.”

Beyond UPI: What do PhonePe’s UAE licences mean?

Notably, the Walmart-backed company has received IPA for two licences — one for Retail Payment Services and Card Schemes (RPSCS) and the second for Stored Value Facilities (SVF).

The release noted that its proposed expansion into the Emirates will be supported by the country’s Financial Infrastructure Transformation (FIT) program. Here’s a look at what the expansion will focus on:

• Further, it intends to explore opportunities to support UAE’s domestic payment rails — ‘Aani’ and ‘Jaywan’, by leveraging its full-stack technology platform.
• “PhonePe intends for its proposed deployment to complement existing financial infrastructure and support seamless commerce for residents and enterprises,” the release stated.

India expands UPI payments abroad

In partnership with NPCI International Payments Limited (NIPL), PhonePe already allows UPI payments (QR code and instant pay across NEOPAY and Network International terminals) for Indian travellers in the UAE via existing cross-border arrangements.

For foreign markets, UPI is linked with the payment systems of various countries to facilitate Person-to-Person (P2P) remittances and Person-to-Merchant (P2M) transactions. Foreign countries with UPI enabled and available for Indian travellers include Bhutan, Cambodia, France, Greece, Mauritius, Nepal, Singapore, Sri Lanka, UAE, Uzbekistan and Qatar.

About PhonePe — All we know

Headquartered in India, PhonePe is a technology company that builds digital platforms for payments, digital distribution services and financial services, according to the release.

The PhonePe digital payments app was launched in 2016 and as of August 2026 has more than 72 crore life-till-date registered users and a digital payments acceptance network spread across over 5 crore merchants. “The company’s technology architecture handles high transaction volumes with proven resilience, serving over 700 million registered users and 50 million merchants in India,” the release stated.

Its products and services include consumer payments (including digital distribution services), merchant payments, lending and insurance distribution services, and new platforms. The last category comprises Share.Market (stock broking and mutual funds distribution platform), and Indus Appstore (Android-based mobile app marketplace), it added.

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