In a landmark move, NPCI International Payments Limited (NIPL), the global entity of the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI), has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Eurobank, a leading bank based in Greece. This strategic partnership aims to streamline cross-border payments to India through the Unified Payments Interface (UPI), with a specific focus on facilitating foreign inward remittances from Greece.
The MoU signing ceremony took place at the Embassy of Greece in New Delhi and was attended by prominent leaders, including Ritesh Shukla, CEO of NIPL, Fokion Karavias, CEO of Eurobank, and other distinguished representatives from Greece.
Under the agreement, NIPL and Eurobank will act as mutual points of contact for facilitating remittances to India. They will jointly manage fund settlement, reconciliation processes, and dispute resolutions within their respective jurisdictions.
This collaboration is expected to simplify cross-border payments for the Indian diaspora residing in Greece, offering them a convenient route to transfer funds to India through UPI rails.
Ritesh Shukla, CEO of NIPL, expressed the significance of this strategic alliance, stating, “This partnership with Eurobank is a pivotal step in expanding Indian-built payment technologies globally. It highlights our dedication to innovation and customer-centric solutions, setting a new benchmark for international payment systems and reinforcing our vision for a more connected and financially inclusive world.”
Fokion Karavias, CEO of Eurobank, also shared his enthusiasm about collaborating with NPCI International, leveraging UPI technology for payments from Greece to India. He stated, “We are excited about the prospect of cooperating with NPCI International to leverage its pioneering UPI technology in payments from Greece to India…”
Greece now stands among the first European countries enabling remittances to India using UPI rails, following Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s rollout of UPI in France a few weeks ago. This development follows the successful cross-border integration of UPI with Singapore’s PayNow in February last year, enabling users in both countries to conduct cross-border payments.
It is noteworthy that countries like Sri Lanka, Mauritius, Bhutan, Nepal, the UAE, and Canada have also implemented UPI in their respective regions. India has signed memoranda of understanding (MoUs) with approximately 30 countries globally to deploy the UPI stack, as announced by IT Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw.
Established in 2020, NIPL is dedicated to deploying NPCI’s indigenous offerings, including UPI and the card network RuPay, outside India.
