# Parliament panel flags Rs 20,700 crore UPI funding gap

2026-08-13T06:56:08+00:00 | Business & Economy | Indian Opinion Desk

Corroboration: 2 independent outlets

A parliamentary standing committee has warned of a Rs 20,700 crore funding gap in UPI, against a government allocation of just Rs 2,000 crore. The committee, chaired by Bhartruhari Mahtab, said the current subsidy covers only 11% of industry costs, threatening investment in cybersecurity and fraud prevention. The Finance Ministry told the panel it is weighing two options: restoring a merchant discount rate (MDR) for high-value transactions or a tiered incentive system to phase out government support. The ministry has clarified that any future MDR will be nominal and apply only to a limited set of merchant transactions, while consumer payments will remain free.

## Coverage

- economictimes.indiatimes.com <https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/industry/banking/finance/upi-costs-rs-20700-crore-government-allocation-just-rs-2000-crore-parliament-panel/articleshow/133197619.cms>
- timesnownews.com <https://www.timesnownews.com/business-economy/economy/centre-working-to-make-upi-related-costs-easy-weighing-on-two-options-finance-ministry-tells-parliament-article-155605616>

Tags: digital payments, financial sustainability, funding gap, MDR, Parliamentary panel, UPI
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