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Google India Digital Services Out Ltd on Wednesday signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the NPCI International Payments Ltd (NIPL), a wholly-owned subsidiary of the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI), to expand the transformative impact of UPI to countries beyond India.

The pact seeks to broaden the use of UPI payments for travellers outside of India, enabling them to conveniently make transactions abroad.

The MoU also intends to assist in establishing UPI-like digital payment systems in other countries, providing a model for seamless financial transactions. Also, it focuses on easing the process of remittances between countries by utilising the UPI infrastructure, thereby simplifying cross-border financial exchanges, the tech giant said in a statement.

“Google Pay has been a proud and willing collaborator to NPCI and the financial ecosystem, under the regulator’s guidance, and this collaboration is another step towards our commitment to making payments simple, safe and convenient,” said Deeksha Kaushal, Director, Partnerships, Google Pay India.

The goal is to provide foreign merchants access to Indian customers who will no longer have to rely only on foreign currency and/or, credit or forex cards for making digital payments and will have the option using UPI powered Apps from India including Google Pay.

Moreover, the MoU will also significantly contribute to simplifying remittances by reducing dependence on conventional money transfer channels.

“This strategic partnership will not only simplify foreign transactions for Indian travelers but will also allow us to extend our knowledge and expertise of operating a successful digital payments ecosystem to other countries,” said Ritesh Shukla, CEO – NPCI International Payments Limited (NIPL).