Google Pay introduces Wallet feature

In an effort to address concerns over payment failures, Google Pay has recently integrated a wallet feature into its Unified Payments Interface (UPI) based payment application. Previously, users relied on direct bank account transactions through the app, often facing issues when bank servers encountered downtime, leading to transaction failures. However, the inclusion of UPI Lite, a wallet facility within the app, aims to mitigate such problems.

How to Use The Wallet Feature.
To access the wallet feature, users can simply click on their profile photo within the Google Pay app and select the UPI Lite option. After choosing "continue," they can transfer money from their bank account to their wallet and activate UPI Lite. The wallet balance can be easily viewed on the app's home screen. It's important to note that in the event of changing one's registered mobile phone, the remaining wallet balance in UPI Lite becomes inaccessible. Therefore, users are advised to cancel UPI Lite registration before switching phone numbers to ensure the transfer of money back to their bank account.

The Reserve Bank authorized payment apps to introduce the UPI Lite feature in September 2022. Apps like BHIM and Paytm had already implemented this functionality The facility to link RuPay credit cards was also included in the Google Pay app two weeks ago.

The Wallet’s Limit
The wallet functionality allows for the transfer of funds from a linked bank account to the Google Pay wallet, enabling seamless transactions of up to Rs 200 without requiring a PIN. Users can keep a maximum of Rs 2,000 in the wallet and transfer up to Rs 4,000 from their bank account to the wallet through two separate transactions, within a 24-hour period.