ECB Approves Linking of Europe’s TIPS with India’s UPI for Instant Cross-Border Payments

European Central Bank Greenlights Interlinking of TIPS and India’s UPI

The European Central Bank (ECB) has taken a major step towards faster and more affordable remittances between Europe and India. On November 19, 2025, the ECB Governing Council formally approved moving ahead with connecting the Eurosystem’s TARGET Instant Payment Settlement (TIPS) service with India’s Unified Payments Interface (UPI).

Following successful exploratory work that began in October 2024, the project has now entered the implementation phase. Technical development and legal agreements will proceed in parallel.

India is one of the largest recipients of remittances from the euro area, and this linkage is expected to significantly reduce both cost and time for millions of transactions.

Key Benefits Once Live

• Instant transfers in seconds, 24/7, directly between euro accounts in Europe and UPI IDs in India.
• Drastically lower fees compared to traditional channels like SWIFT.
• Easier and quicker trade settlements for businesses operating between the two regions.
• Greater financial inclusion for the Indian diaspora in Europe.

The initiative may also leverage the Bank for International Settlements’ (BIS) Nexus platform, which already connects fast-payment systems across several countries including India.

Background and Timeline

• TIPS has been Europe’s pan-European instant payment settlement system since 2018, operating in euro and Swedish krona.
• UPI, developed by the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) and regulated by the Reserve Bank of India, is the world’s largest real-time retail payment system by volume.
• No exact launch date has been announced, but active development is now underway.

This development aligns with G20 priorities on improving cross-border payments and further strengthens UPI’s growing international footprint (already live with countries such as Singapore, UAE, France, and others).

Interested payment service providers in Europe can reach out to TIPS@ecb.europa.eu for participation details.